{"id":87925,"date":"2019-03-26T12:55:27","date_gmt":"2019-03-26T17:55:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/2019\/03\/26\/nearly-as-many-americans-prefer-to-get-their-local-news-online-as-prefer-the-tv-set\/"},"modified":"2024-08-08T13:41:11","modified_gmt":"2024-08-08T17:41:11","slug":"nearly-as-many-americans-prefer-to-get-their-local-news-online-as-prefer-the-tv-set","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/journalism\/2019\/03\/26\/nearly-as-many-americans-prefer-to-get-their-local-news-online-as-prefer-the-tv-set\/","title":{"rendered":"1. Nearly as many Americans prefer to get their local news online as prefer the TV set"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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The digital environment is now a key component in how Americans learn about local events and issues in the news. Today, almost as many U.S. adults say they prefer to get their local news through the internet as prefer to do so through the television set.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Chart<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Specifically, when asked which pathways they prefer to use for local news \u2013 the television set, the internet (either through social media or websites\/apps), print or radio \u2013 nearly the same portion of U.S. adults say they prefer an online method (37% total, including 23% who favor news websites or apps and 15% who name social media) as say they prefer television (41%). Far fewer prefer print newspapers (13%) or radio (8%). This close split between TV and online pathways tracks closely with<\/a> how Americans access news more generally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beyond digital being the preferred pathway, 89% of Americans get at least some local news digitally and about four-in-ten (41%) do so often. This breaks down to about equal shares who often get local news specifically from social media (25%) and online news websites or mobile apps (26%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Local TV stations remain the most relied-on individual source, despite having little online presence<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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In addition to the various pathways used to get local news \u2013 online sites, apps, television, print and radio \u2013 consumers can turn to a growing range of specific sources. In most cases these sources now offer content through several pathways. For example, someone who turns to their local newspaper for news can access it in print, via its website or by following the outlet on social media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To untangle this complex system, this study first asked respondents how often they get local news from each of nine different providers (such as local TV stations or community newspapers), and then asked how they tend to access that source (whether print, television, the internet, etc.).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The results show that local TV stations are the top type of source for local news. About four-in-ten Americans (38%) say they often get news from local TV stations (86% ever do so). Radio stations (from which 20% often get news) and daily newspapers (17%) serve as the next most popular providers of local news.<\/p>\n\n\n

[2.numoffset=”2″ Responses to a follow-up question that asked people to name one of these online-only sources suggest the figure could be smaller, as some portion of the population named specific outlets that also have a non-digital format, such as a newspaper with a print edition.]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All in all, 28% of the public often gets news from at least one of six less traditional types of providers asked about here, and a vast majority \u2013 89% \u2013 ever get news from at least one of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many Americans turn to the online versions of local news providers<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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Even as TV stations are a powerhouse source for local news, they are still accessed primarily through the analog format of television sets; this is also true of radio news stations.[3. For each provider type, respondents were shown the applicable non-digital platform(s), i.e., print, TV set (even if the set itself has a digital connection), radio and word of mouth. These responses are all collapsed in this report as \u201canalog.\u201d] Fully 76% of those who get news from local TV stations and 81% of those who get news from radio stations primarily go to these providers through the traditional pathway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But other news providers have a substantial portion of their audience who access them online. Among those who get local news from daily newspapers, for example, 43% primarily access them online while 54% get them mainly in a print format. And nearly half of those who get local news from newsletters or listservs (49%) do so primarily online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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At the same time, few Americans are fully analog or fully digital in the way they get local news. Instead, most (68%) mix online and offline pathways, for example, turning on the TV set to watch their local news station but going online to read the daily newspaper and neighborhood listserv.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just 7% of Americans indicate that they only use digital pathways as their primary access points. Three times as many U.S. adults (21%) mainly access all providers they get news from through an analog pathway \u2013 though this is still also a clear minority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Minority of Americans often turn to multiple types of providers for local news<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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When it comes to Americans\u2019 everyday news habits, most get their local news from a small number of sources. In fact, a sizable portion of the public doesn\u2019t frequently turn to any sources: Nearly four-in-ten Americans (38%) don\u2019t get news often from any of the nine provider types. Three-in-ten regularly rely on a single source type \u2013 most often local TV stations \u2013 and another 31% often get news from two or more types of sources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nonetheless, a large majority of U.S. adults (79%) get at least some news from four or more of the nine types asked about. In other words, while Americans may not frequently get local news from very many providers, their local news diets overall span a wide range of sources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Infrequent local news consumers are more likely to turn to digital formats<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

In many cases, Americans who turn to local news providers more frequently are more likely to access them in analog form rather than digital. Conversely, infrequent news users are more likely than frequent ones to take a digital path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, 90% of those who reliably turn to a local TV station do so primarily on a TV set. This drops to 71% among those who say they engage with local TV stations only sometimes, and 52% among those who say they hardly ever get news there. The remaining shares of each utilize digital options. A similar pattern holds for users of daily newspapers, radio stations and non-daily newspapers: Those who often get news there are more likely than less frequent users to opt for traditional means.[4. These relationships between frequency of use and access among these provider types still hold even when accounting for age.]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Charts<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Chart<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A similar dynamic comes through at a broader level.  Roughly two-in-ten (21%) of those who prefer to get local news online tend to follow local news very closely, compared with 40% of those who prefer TV and 35% of those who prefer print. The few Americans who prefer radio are also less likely to follow local news very closely (19%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Charts<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Americans still rely on other people to keep them updated<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Beyond media organizations and other information providers, it\u2019s common to get local news from friends, neighbors and family \u2013 90% do so at least occasionally, and 17% do so often. This largely happens by word of mouth (either face to face or over the phone) as opposed to through email, text or social media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many say the internet is an important source for local news; fewer say this of social media specifically<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Most Americans see the internet as an important way of keeping up with local news, but fewer see it as critical. Overall, a large majority (77%) say the internet is important in how they get local news, but this drops to about a third (32%) who think it is the most important way. Just one-in-ten, on the other hand, say the internet is not important in getting local news, and a similar-sized share doesn\u2019t use the internet to get news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When it comes to social media specifically, more than half of Americans (54%) describe it as an important way they get local news, though 14% say it is the most important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n