Coronavirus-Driven Downturn Hits Newspapers Hard as TV News Thrives
Among the six publicly traded newspaper companies studied, second-quarter advertising revenue fell by a median of 42% year over year.
Americans Who Mainly Get Their News on Social Media Are Less Engaged, Less Knowledgeable
U.S. adults in this group are less likely to get the facts right about COVID-19 and politics and more likely to hear some unproven claims.
Local news is playing an important role for Americans during COVID-19 outbreak
Some 61% of U.S. adults say they follow COVID-19 news at both the national and local level equally, and 23% say they pay more attention to local news.
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.
Older Americans, Black Adults and Americans With Less Education More Interested in Local News
Older Americans, black adults and those with a high school education or less show considerably more interest in local news than their counterparts.
Local TV News Fact Sheet
Local television news programming has shed audience over the past decade, but it still garners more viewers on average than cable and network news programs.
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.
For many rural residents in U.S., local news media mostly don’t cover the area where they live
A majority of rural Americans say local news media mostly cover an area other than the one where they live.
For Local News, Americans Embrace Digital but Still Want Strong Community Connection
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.
Most Americans – especially Republicans – say local journalists shouldn’t express views on local issues
There are partisan divisions over certain aspects of local news reporting, including whether local journalists should express views on local issues.
