Americans’ Complicated Relationship With News
Most people believe Americans have a civic responsibility to be informed when they vote. But far fewer say regularly following news is extremely or very important.
Most people believe Americans have a civic responsibility to be informed when they vote. But far fewer say regularly following news is extremely or very important.
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Publications
Summary of Findings Americans say they followed news about the Winter Olympics in Vancouver more closely than any other major news story last week. The Olympics also proved to be one of two stories people talked about most frequently with friends. The other was Tiger Woods’ televised apology for marital infidelities. About a quarter of […]
Summary of Findings Americans say they tracked the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti more closely than any other major news story last week, but they also kept a close watch on news about the U.S. economy and the powerful snow storms that hit the nation’s East Coast and South. Three-in-ten (30%) say they followed […]
Summary of Findings Americans continue to closely track news about the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti and the U.S. economy, paying less close attention to the fast-evolving story about serious safety problems with Toyota automobiles. Still, the public is quite laudatory of press coverage of the automaker’s problems. More than four-in-ten say they followed […]
Summary of Findings In a week when the media focused heavily on Barack Obama’s first State of the Union address and the state of the economy, Americans continued to track news about the earthquake in Haiti more closely than any other major news story. Four-in-ten say they followed news about the aftermath of the earthquake […]
Coverage of the President’s prime-time speech and assessments of his stewardship in office dominated the news agenda last week. Meanwhile, news about the economy, events in Haiti and trouble for Toyota filled out the roster of top stories. And attention to one of the week’s top newsmakers varied dramatically on cable news.
Summary of Findings Americans tracked the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in Haiti more closely than any other major news last week, but also kept a close watch on two intertwined stories: the fate of health care legislation in Washington and the outcome of last week’s special election for U.S. Senate in Massachusetts. Nearly half […]
Summary of Findings Americans have been highly focused on the massive earthquake that struck Haiti Jan. 12. Not only is the disaster clearly the public’s top news story, fully 70% say it is the story they are talking about with friends. Overall interest in news about the Haiti earthquake is on par with interest in […]
Summary of Findings The public and the media went their own ways on the news last week. The media kept up heavy coverage of the aftermath of the attempt to blow up a Detroit-bound jet on Christmas Day, while the public focused most closely on the health care debate in Washington. About a quarter (26%) […]
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.