---
title: "Methodology"
description: "The analysis in this report uses data from five waves of the American Trends Panel (ATP), which were fielded during November 2019, and February, March, April, and June 2020. Respondents’ most-used platform for political and election news was asked in the November 2019 survey, and all demographic characteristics of each group are taken from that […]"
date: "2020-07-30"
authors:
  - name: "Amy Mitchell"
    job_title: "Former Director, Journalism Research"
    link: "https://www.pewresearch.org/staff/amy-mitchell/"
  - name: "Mark Jurkowitz"
    job_title: "Senior Writer"
    link: "https://www.pewresearch.org/staff/mark-jurkowitz/"
  - name: "J. Baxter Oliphant"
    job_title: "Senior Researcher "
    link: "https://www.pewresearch.org/staff/baxter-oliphant/"
  - name: "Elisa Shearer"
    job_title: "Senior Researcher"
    link: "https://www.pewresearch.org/staff/elisa-shearer/"
url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/2020/07/30/social-media-news-consumers-methodology/"
categories:
  - "American News Pathways 2020 Project"
  - "Coronavirus (COVID-19)"
  - "COVID-19 & Science"
  - "COVID-19 in the News"
  - "Digital News Landscape"
  - "Election 2020"
  - "Misinformation"
  - "Misinformation Online"
  - "Public Knowledge"
  - "Social Media"
  - "Social Media & the News"
  - "Television"
datasets:
  - name: "American News Pathways June 2020 Survey"
    url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/dataset/american-news-pathways-june-2020-survey/"
---

# Methodology

The analysis in this report uses data from five waves of the American Trends Panel (ATP), which were fielded during November 2019, and February, March, April, and June 2020. Respondents’ most-used platform for political and election news was asked in the November 2019 survey, and all demographic characteristics of each group are taken from that survey. See the full methodologies for each of the five surveys conducted below:

- [American Trends Panel June 2020 survey methodology](https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/2020/03/11/election-news-pathways-methodology/#american-trends-panel-june-2020-survey-methodology)

- [American Trends Panel April 2020 survey methodology](https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/2020/03/11/election-news-pathways-methodology/#american-trends-panel-april-2020-survey-methodology)

- [American Trends Panel March 2020 survey methodology](https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/2020/03/11/election-news-pathways-methodology/#american-trends-panel-march-2020-survey-methodology)

- [American Trends Panel February 2020 survey methodology](https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/2020/03/11/election-news-pathways-methodology/#american-trends-panel-february-2020-survey-methodology)

- [American Trends Panel November 2019 survey methodology](https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/2020/03/11/election-news-pathways-methodology/#american-trends-panel-november-2019-survey-methodology)

[![](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2020/07/PJ_2020.07.30_social-media-news_M-01.png?w=840)](https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/2020/07/30/social-media-news-consumers-methodology/pj_2020-07-30_social-media-news_m-01-png/)