Good news for APN as it divests its ARM regional media business: People trust you.

New research from industry group The Newspaper Works - of which APN is part owner - shows regional news media has almost twice the trust of TV and radio. More than half of respondents (54 per cent) said it was their "most trusted" source of information, with TV down at 29 per cent, radio at 27 per cent and online search at 18 per cent.

The Think local - regional news media report also found regional newspapers were considered the most engaging source of information, with readers 1.4 times more likely to find it more engaging than TV and 1.6 times more than radio. Letterbox-dropped catalogues and flyers came in at almost a third of the engagement of newspapers, although the report doesn't come up with a figure for those delivered as inserts..

Regional news media reaches 3.9 million residents in regional Australia.

The report was commissioned by The Newspaper Works and conducted by Research Now among 1440 respondents.

Respondents also rated regional newspapers their top source of information on local business, the most influential media for shopping and buying decisions and an essential connection to the readers' local community.

In terms of providing information about their local communities and how to find businesses and services in their area, regional newspapers outperformed all other media at 77 per cent, compared to 30 per cent for radio, 24 pre cent for catalogues/flyers and 22 per cent for television. They were also the biggest influencer of shopping and buying behaviour at 37 per cent.

Regional news media readers were four times more likely to be high income earners than non-readers, with 41 per cent earning $80,000 or more per annum.

The Nielsen Global Trust in Advertising Report, released last September, found that newspapers were also the most trusted medium for ads.