Attention to COVID-19 news increased slightly amid omicron surge; partisans differ in views about the outbreak
37% of U.S. adults say they are following news about the coronavirus outbreak very closely. That is up from 31% in March 2021.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
37% of U.S. adults say they are following news about the coronavirus outbreak very closely. That is up from 31% in March 2021.
The declining public trust in the news media and polarization of news audiences have profound effects on civic life.
Here is how the average adult Twitter user in the U.S. tweeted about the news in 2021, as well as how these patterns have changed since 2015.
Fully 70% of U.S. adult Twitter news consumers say they have used Twitter to follow live news events, up from 59% who said this in 2015.
Looking at respondents to 2020 and 2021 surveys reveals differences in vaccination rates based on where people turned most for COVID-19 news.
About half (48%) of U.S. adults say they get news from social media “often” or “sometimes,” a 5 percentage point decline compared with 2020. More than half of Twitter users get news on the site regularly.
In just five years, the percentage of Republicans with at least some trust in national news organizations has been cut in half.
Roughly half of Americans say that they have been getting some (30%) or a lot (18%) of news and info about COVID-19 vaccines on social media.
48% of US adults say the government should restrict false information online, even if it means losing some freedom to access/publish content.
We’ve updated our series of fact sheets on the U.S. news media industry. Here are some key findings about the state of the industry in 2020.