State of the News Media (Project)

Data and trends about key sectors in the U.S. news media industry

The State of the News Media fact sheets use a range of different methodologies to study the health of the U.S. news industry, including custom analysis of news audience behavior, secondary analysis of industry data and direct reporting to solicit information unavailable elsewhere.

While newspapers have seen steep job losses from 2008 to 2020, digital-native news organizations have seen considerable gains.

Newspapers are a critical part of the American news landscape, but they have been hard hit as more and more Americans consume news digitally.

Among the six publicly traded newspaper companies studied, second-quarter advertising revenue fell by a median of 42% year over year.

Though this figure is a sliver of all PPP loans lent out to small businesses as of August, it represents a large segment of U.S. newspaper companies.

To mark World Press Freedom Day, here are five charts that show how people globally see the freedom of the press.

While U.S. Democrats turn to a variety of outlets for political news, no source comes close to matching the appeal of Fox News for Republicans.

Newspaper circulation in the U.S. reached its lowest level since 1940, and the audience for local TV news has steadily declined.

Nearly as many U.S. adults prefer to get local news online as through a TV set. And while Americans prize community connection from their local news providers, they are largely unaware of the financial challenges they face.