Three in four Republicans believe media makes up stories about Donald Trump

Three in four Republicans believe the media invents stories about Donald Trump, a new poll has revealed in a sign his “fake news” campaign is working. 

The figure is even higher for those who strongly approve of how the US President is performing, with 85 per cent of that group saying the same.

The findings come after a relentless campaign by Mr Trump against the media in the nine months he has been in office. 

His criticism dates back to his election campaign, when reporters were heckled and booed by Mr Trump’s supporters as he pointed them out at rallies. 

The US president renewed his attacks on the media on Tuesday during a round of interviews with talk radio shows.

"Actually, dishonesty in the media is one of the things that surprised me the most,” Mr Trump said, picking out cable networks with whom he has repeatedly clashed.

“I thought after I won, the media would become much more stable and much more honest. They’ve gone crazy. CNN is a joke. NBC is a total joke.

“You watch what they report, it bears no relationship to what I’m doing. But the media is absolutely dishonest — and frankly, I’ve never seen anything quite like it.”

Despite the attacks being condemned by newspaper columnists and Democratic politicians, it appears they have struck a chord with Mr Trump’s Republican base.

A Politico/Morning Consult poll found that 76 per cent of Republican voters believe the news media fabricate stories about Mr Trump. Among all voters, that figure is 46 per cent.

“Voters, particularly Trump supporters, have become disenchanted with the national media,” said Kyle Dropp, chief research officer of Morning Consult, in a Politico article. 

“Even 20 per cent of Democrats think that the national media fabricate stories on President Trump and his administration. That being said, many are still not willing to let the federal government censor the media.”