In mediated communication, there is a greater preference to consider a/an ______ as credible.

In mediated communication the known first information source is more readily trusted as credible.

When a receiver already recognises the original source and it comes first, familiarity lends it authority.

A source that is unconventional carries uncertainty and is not automatically granted credibility.

A known second information source is one step removed, a relay, so it loses some of the trust the primary source enjoys.

An unknown information source lacks any established reputation and so attracts caution rather than belief.

This preference underpins why named, first-hand origins are favoured over anonymous or second-hand ones in media messages.