The lead researcher of a widely-circulated poll on the influence of EU media has told Euractiv that the American PR firm that commissioned the study misinterpreted some of his findings.

The comments raise questions over the integrity of Burson's 'EU Media Poll', published earlier this week, which informs advertising and subscription decisions across the Brussels media landscape.

The annual poll seeks to gauge the influence of various media outlets in the EU institutions, including the European Parliament, with members of those institutions among those surveyed. In the 2025 edition, Politico retained its ranking as the most influential outlet, ahead of the Financial Times and Reuters; Euractiv, which ranked fifth, was the only European outlet in the top five.

Now, the pollster who led the work behind the report has criticised how some of his findings were interpreted by Burson. "I don’t think that it necessarily represents the broader MEP opinions,” Chris Hopkins of UK-based research firm Savanta told Euractiv in an interview.