10 charts about America’s newsrooms
Mergers, closures and layoffs have affected many media organizations. Here are 10 charts on the state of newsroom employment in the U.S. today.
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As newsrooms face coronavirus-related cuts, 54% of Americans rate media’s response to the outbreak positively
Many U.S. news organizations are covering the coronavirus pandemic while themselves facing financial pressure from the outbreak.
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Decade-long decline in newsroom employment hit midcareer workers the hardest
Newsroom employment dropped by a quarter between 2008 and 2018, but the job cuts were not shouldered equally by journalists of all ages.
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Most say journalists should be watchdogs, but views of how well they fill this role vary by party, media diet
Nearly three out of four U.S. adults say that, in general, it’s important for journalists to function as watchdogs over elected officials.
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Fast facts about the newspaper industry’s financial struggles as McClatchy files for bankruptcy
U.S. newspaper circulation fell in 2018 to its lowest level since 1940, and newspaper revenues declined dramatically between 2008 and 2018.
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One-in-five U.S. newsroom employees live in New York, Los Angeles or D.C.
About one-in-five newsroom employees (22%) live in these three metro areas, which, by comparison, are home to 13% of all U.S. workers.
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Who pays for local news in the U.S.?
While few Americans pay for local news, some people are more likely to do so than others – and most believe their local news outlets are doing well financially.
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About a quarter of large U.S. newspapers laid off staff in 2018
Mid-market newspapers were the most likely to suffer layoffs in 2018. Digital-native news outlets also faced continued layoffs.
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Many Americans Say Made-Up News Is a Critical Problem That Needs To Be Fixed
Politicians viewed as major creators of it, but journalists seen as the ones who should fix it
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It’s more common for white, older, more-educated Americans to have spoken with local journalists
Overall, about two-in-ten Americans say they have ever spoken with or been interviewed by a local journalist.
