Trust has become one of the defining challenges of political and corporate leadership today, especially in an age of no-holds-barred politics.

Society is not simply asking for “more trust”. It is calling for the conditions that create trust.

The reason is simple. Trust in governments, business, institutions and their leaders remain under pressure.

The distinction between 'more trust' and 'conditions that create trust' is important.

Trust cannot be manufactured through messaging. It must be earned through behaviour, relationships and communication that demonstrate competence, reliability, responsiveness, integrity, openness and fairness.

OECD research identifies these qualities as central drivers of public trust. The Edelman Trust Barometer similarly records concern that governments and businesses too often appear to serve narrow interests rather than the broader community. Australians are looking for leadership that listens, acts competently, communicates honestly and demonstrates that decisions are being made with proper regard for the public and stakeholder interest.

This is where professional public relations has an increasingly important role.

A recent Conversations in PR discussion with Emeritus Professor Jim Macnamara reinforced one of the profession’s most fundamental responsibilities: listening.

Strategic communication must begin with understanding what stakeholders value, what concerns them, what they believe and, importantly, what they do not believe.

The 2026 Edelman Trust Barometer adds to this challenge, identifying a retreat into smaller circles of trust and increasing resistance towards people and institutions perceived as holding different values or views. In such an environment, listening and understanding different realities become essential to rebuilding trust.

Stakeholder listening cannot therefore be an occasional consultation exercise undertaken before a major announcement. It needs to become a continuing source of organisational intelligence.

A mature PR function should be able to tell a CEO, minister, board or executive team: "This is what our stakeholders are telling us. This is why they are saying it. This is what they do not believe. And this is what we need to address before we communicate the decision."

That is considerably more valuable than simply producing content.

It is also why experienced public relations practitioners should be part of executive decision-making. They bring stakeholder intelligence, understanding of community sentiment, emerging issues, reputational risk and advice on the likely consequences of organisational or policy decisions.

The changing information environment makes that role even more important. The Reuters Institute’s Digital News Report 2025 confirms the continuing fragmentation of news and information across social media, video platforms, podcasts and individual creators. There is no longer one public conversation into which an organisation can simply insert a carefully crafted message.

Nor can trust be communicated into existence.

If organisational behaviour gives stakeholders no reason to trust, changing the message will not solve the problem. Sometimes the decision, policy, behaviour or engagement process itself must change.

AI will automate many communication tasks, but it will not readily replace the professional judgement required to understand relationships, competing interests, institutional credibility and the consequences of organisational behaviour.

That is where public relations should concentrate its future.

Its most important role today is to become the organisation’s trusted adviser on trust itself: listening to stakeholders, informing leadership, anticipating reputational consequences and helping align organisational behaviour with communication.

In an era of low trust, polarisation and accelerating change, that is not a supporting function.

It is a leadership function.

For further information on the role of strategic communication and trust, contact Robert Masters.

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