The landscape of local news in the U.S. has changed significantly in recent decades as Americans have been turning away from print and television and toward digital media. In 2025, 21% of Americans say they follow local news very closely, down from 37% in 2016.
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Summary of Findings The public’s news interests this week are far out of sync with the news media’s coverage: While the aftermath of the Japan earthquake and tsunami was the public’s top story by a wide margin, news organizations devoted far more coverage to the military conflict in Libya. Nearly six-in-ten Americans (57%) say they […]
Summary of Findings News about the aftermath of the deadly earthquake and tsunami in Japan dominated the public’s news interest and media coverage last week. The crisis at Japan’s nuclear plants – far more than other aspects of the story – captured the most public interest. Fully 57% say they followed news about the aftermath […]
U.S. adults largely value journalists’ role in society but see their influence declining – and they differ over what a journalist is.
Democrats are much more likely than Republicans to both use and trust many major news sources.
Far fewer are hearing about the administration’s relationship with the media than was the case early in President Donald Trump’s first term.
This study explores the makeup of the social media news influencer universe, including who they are, what content they create and who their audiences are.
