As if things weren’t bad enough for journalists today, a new Pew Study shows that the public thinks journalists contribute very little to society (LINK).

It is a sad commentary that a profession that has been a watchdog over government entities and other facets of life have dropped to such a level of esteem in the mind of the public.

The military ranked the highest in the study for its perceived contribution to society at 78% while journalists came near the bottom with just 28% saying the Press contributes “a lot.” That number is down fully 10% since 2009 when 38% of Americans viewed Journalists in a positive light.

The Pew Research Center asked Americans to rate certain professions by their perceived contribution to society. Teachers were second followed by doctors and scientists (see list below).

Ironically, as the ranks of the media has swelled with females in the past decade, according to the study women have lost faith in the media more than men in the last four years. The study shows a 17% drop from 46% of women saying they think journalists contribute to society compared to 29% since 2009.