Many Americans say they feel worn out by the amount of news that’s out there and have tuned out at some point, either by no longer following a source or decreasing how much news they get overall. At the same time, survey trends show that fewer Americans closely follow the news than a decade ago, with younger adults consistently consuming less than their older peers.
“Americans’ Complicated Relationship With News”
| Rising | Staying about the same | Falling | Not sure | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. adults | 50% | 16% | 18% | 15% |
“Americans’ Complicated Relationship With News”
Despite these trends, half of U.S. adults say Americans as a whole now consume more news than they did 10 years ago. Far fewer (18%) say Americans’ news consumption has decreased. The rest say news consumption has been relatively steady (16%), or that they aren’t sure (15%).
To understand why, we spoke with 45 everyday Americans in nine focus groups. These discussions weren’t meant to reflect overall public opinion, but they did reveal interesting insights into how people think about and interpret changes in news consumption over time. Their explanations drew heavily on personal experience and life transitions that changed how they follow the news. Below are some of the themes that surfaced and what they had to say in their own words.
This is part of a study of U.S. adults aimed at understanding how Americans are thinking about and experiencing news today. Read key findings from the full study.
News is everywhere: Why people think news consumption is rising
Participants frequently described an environment saturated with information. Even those who try to avoid news said it often shows up uninvited.
“There are a lot more different ways that you can consume news now than you used to be able to, so it sucks in more people from different walks of life.”
– Woman, 60s
“Yeah, I feel like before we had cellphones, we just used to watch the regular news at night, you know? But nowadays on the phones, you get alerts from Apple News telling you, hey, something happened in California. Or, hey, this is happening. And I didn’t even sign up for it, but it just comes. … So that has changed a lot, and now it has become the standard for many people, I think.”
– Man, 40s
Many mentioned Americans’ transition from traditional news sources like newspapers and TV to digital platforms and social media. They also expressed that news consumption (including their own) has increased because of the range of new sources available to them.
“So 20-something years ago, I got most of my news from maybe three channels, like ABC, NBC, stuff like that, or in a newspaper. … Nowadays, no more newspaper. Don’t watch TV that much because everything’s streamed, so most of the stuff is online. … There’s just tons of ways to get more information. So I consume more of it because there’s just a lot more of it to be able to consume.”
– Man, 40s
“There’s more options now to consume news. You have these podcasts. You can check the news on social media sites … even when you open a social media site like Twitter, there’s news everywhere. So yeah, that’s why I feel like we tend to consume it more.”
– Woman, 30s
“A large part of why I think it’s rising is because people are aware earlier. The kids on TikTok, my middle school niece knew what was going on just as much as I did. Like, I was not paying attention to the news in middle school, but it’s popping up on her feed, so she’s asking, ‘Hey, what’s the situation on this?’”
– Woman, 20s
Some participants lamented the shift, saying a “news overload” has forced them to step away from it or consume it more intentionally to protect their mental health.
How news habits change in different life stages
Participants described how transitions in their own lives reshaped their news habits – sometimes increasing interest, sometimes limiting it. Some discussed how life experiences – ranging from college and parenting to career changes and military service – have shaped and reshaped their news habits and preferences. These life moments influenced what topics felt relevant and how much attention participants gave to the news.
Some participants described how growing older had changed their relationships with news:
“Well, I want to know more now, like as I’m older now. I didn’t care before. I just want to know more.”
– Woman, 40s
“Through life, I’ve gained different awarenesses I might not have had as a young person. Like now, as I’m going into my late 50s, 60s, I think more about financial news or what’s affecting the markets or what’s going to be affecting my retirement.”
– Woman, 50s
Others described how parenting, new jobs or college have changed what news they followed or opened new areas of interest.
“I think work and having a kid transitioned into more specific information with a focus of what I want to hear.”
– Man, 30s
“For me it was going to college. I think before, I just kind of relied on whatever my parents would tell me about what’s going on in the world. … When I got to college and was around people my age, some people who were more informed, some people who were less informed, I kind of saw … more people that were different than me. And I realized, like, oh, I want to be more informed about this, about what’s going on in the world. … And I wasn’t necessarily just listening to what my parents told me 24/7. Instead, I could form my own opinions.”
– Woman, 30s
“If I think back to when I was little, my parents would have on Walter Cronkite or something. That’s 30 minutes, and not even. … Where today because of being an investment professional, I have to focus in on [news] way more, and I’ll usually have Bloomberg in my office as a background.”
– Man, 60s
How world events shape people’s news consumption
Major national and global events – terrorist attacks, pandemics, natural disasters and international conflicts – often serve as turning points that shift participants’ attention to news. For some, these events make the news feel more urgent and personally relevant, increasing their news consumption. For others, the constant stream of high-stakes developments creates news fatigue.
“Prior to 9/11, I didn’t know anything about the Middle East. After 9/11, I wanted to know all about it, you know? So that was a life-changing event.”
– Man, 40s
“I think for me, COVID was a bit of a turning point because it was just – you know, you heard nonstop COVID stuff all day, every day for months. And so I think to me that just got really old, became very repetitive.”
– Man, 30s
“I think I’ve personally been more focused [than in the past] on global news, world news. Just because it affects my day-to-day. Are we going into World War III? Stuff that’s going to affect the people that follow me on a day-to-day basis.”
– Man, 20s (military)
How changes in trust affect people’s news choices
At times, participants in these focus group discussions described changing their news habits as a response to shifting levels of trust in different news sources – something we’ve heard in our other work. These experiences reflect broader patterns of declining trust in information from national and local news organizations, especially among Republicans.
Some participants said they now curate their news more carefully, whether by verifying what they come across or by narrowing their consumption to a small set of trusted sources.
“I think it’s just kind of having to learn to be more discerning over time. It used to be, as a kid, I could just turn on the news on TV and it’s like everything is believable and credible. But in a world where everything has become much more biased, and there’s unreliable and biased sources, you have to kind of take things with a grain of salt and look at where is it coming from, and who’s the source, and what is their main goal? And you just have to put a filter on it.”
– Woman, 40s, Republican
Others described a broader loss of confidence, saying they no longer know who or what to trust:
“The news is not the truth anymore. We don’t know who to trust no more.”
– Woman, 50s, Democrat
