IMHO, this is the direct result of people being endlessly bombarded by negative stories (real or fabricated), over and over and over again. On every channel. On radio stations. In newspapers. In magazines. On sports shows. By reporters. By athletes. By musicians. By actors/actresses.
"Tell a big lie often enough and it will eventually become accepted as truth."
To be perfectly honest and transparent, I barely kept an eye on politics (before Q) because I felt helpless to facilitate any meaningful change. I used to tell my friends that it would be like them handing me an oar, putting me at the rear of an aircraft carrier and asking me to change the course of the ship.
For all the reasons in the first paragraph, this is why POTUS/Q is exposing and dismantling the MSM. It has been used as the primary weapon of propaganda by the Clowns since TV was invented.