Media Literacy, Public Trust, and Audience Skepticism in Hyperlocal Homeless Media: A Content Analysis of Community Instagram Accounts in Bengkulu, Indonesia

Abstract

The expansion of hyperlocal “homeless media” on social media has transformed how local communities access information, evaluate news, and negotiate trust in public institutions. This study investigates media literacy, public trust, and audience skepticism within hyperlocal homeless media in Bengkulu, Indonesia, focusing on community-managed Instagram accounts. Using qualitative content analysis, the research examines user comments posted on two influential accounts, Bengkulu Info and Info Bengkulu Raya, across issues of crime, social welfare, infrastructure, and public service provision.The findings indicate that audience trust in hyperlocal Instagram news is conditional and fragmented. Users depend on these accounts for fast, locally relevant updates, yet they frequently contest news framing, question institutional credibility, and criticize government performance. Media literacy emerges not only through fact-checking and corrections, but also through assessments of journalistic clarity, ethical implications, and reporting proportionality. In crime-related discussions, skepticism often escalates into moral panic and punitive attitudes, reflected in strong public support for coercive responses. Meanwhile, content on social welfare and public services tends to generate more empathetic engagement, although distrust toward political elites and bureaucratic actors remains persistent.This study argues that hyperlocal homeless media function as contested public arenas where trust and skepticism are continuously negotiated through participatory digital discourse. Audience skepticism, rather than signaling low media literacy, reflects active interpretation shaped by local experiences and institutional distrust.