{"id":311688,"date":"2025-05-15T15:32:53","date_gmt":"2025-05-15T19:32:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/?prc_email_campaign=what-do-americans-think-news-is"},"modified":"2026-06-08T12:20:29","modified_gmt":"2026-06-08T16:20:29","slug":"what-do-americans-think-news-is","status":"publish","type":"prc_email_campaign","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/newsletter\/the-briefing\/what-do-americans-think-news-is\/","title":{"rendered":"What do Americans think \u201cnews\u201d is?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>\u2600\ufe0f Happy Thursday!<\/strong>\u00a0<em>The Briefing is your guide to the world of news and information<\/em>.<em> <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/sign-up-for-the-briefing\/\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/sign-up-for-the-briefing\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>Sign up here!<\/strong><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>In today<em>\u2019<\/em>s email:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\n<li><strong>Featured story:<\/strong> Popular progressive news influencer says he was detained when reentering U.S.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n<li><strong>New from Pew Research Center<\/strong>: What do Americans think \u201cnews\u201d is?<\/li>\n\n\n<li><strong>In other news:<\/strong> New pope calls for journalists to avoid divisive language<\/li>\n\n\n<li><strong>Looking ahead:<\/strong> CNN and Fox announce new streaming services<\/li>\n\n\n<li><strong>Chart of the week:<\/strong> Factors in identifying whether something is considered news<\/li>\n\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:25px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\ud83d\udd25\u00a0<strong>Featured story<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Hasan Piker,<\/strong> a popular progressive streamer with millions of followers across YouTube and Twitch, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/05\/12\/us\/politics\/hasan-piker-twitch-questioned-trump-gaza.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said he was detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection<\/a> recently after flying back to the U.S. <strong>Piker said he was asked about many political topics,<\/strong> such as his views on the war in Gaza and President Donald Trump. But a spokesperson for <strong>the Department of Homeland Security<\/strong> <strong>said the incident was not politically motivated<\/strong> and that Piker was released after a routine inspection.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We recently asked the 21% of U.S. adults who say they regularly get news from news influencers on social media to name the first such influencer who comes to mind. Piker, and his handle HasanAbi, was among <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2025\/02\/19\/no-consensus-on-who-comes-to-mind-when-americans-are-asked-to-name-a-news-influencer\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">the most common answers<\/a>. This was part of our broader <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/journalism\/2024\/11\/18\/americas-news-influencers\/#news-influencers-are-mostly-men-more-explicitly-identify-as-right-leaning-than-left-leaning\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">study of news influencers<\/a>, which found that on the whole, there are fewer news influencers like Piker who explicitly identify with the political left than those who are overtly right-leaning.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:25px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\ud83d\udea8 <strong>New from Pew Research Center<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A new <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/journalism\/2025\/05\/13\/what-is-news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Pew Research Center study<\/a> uses qualitative online discussion boards, a nationally representative survey, and in-depth interviews with journalists to better understand the nuances of defining <strong>what \u201cnews\u201d means to Americans in the digital era.<\/strong> An accompanying <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/decoded\/2025\/05\/13\/how-online-discussion-boards-informed-our-study-of-what-news-means-to-americans\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">post on our Decoded blog<\/a> looks more closely at the online discussion board methodology.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Nieman Lab:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.niemanlab.org\/2025\/05\/news-in-2025-is-in-the-eye-of-the-beholder\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cNews\u201d in 2025 is in the eye of the beholder<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:25px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\ud83d\udccc\u00a0<strong>In other news<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\n<li><strong>Pope Leo XIV<\/strong> calls for news media <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/05\/12\/world\/europe\/pope-leo-vatican-journalists.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">to avoid divisive language<\/a>\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n<li><strong>Trump administration<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/white-house-wire-reporters-trump-administration-press-cc81e76d7d8b7a54848cc9f1117cb02a\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">barred wire reporters<\/a> from Air Force One flight to <strong>Middle East<\/strong>\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n<li><strong>LA Times owner <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/2025\/05\/13\/la-times-owner-maneuvers-into-trumps-orbit-with-middle-east-meeting-00346991\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">meets with Trump during Middle East trip<\/a>\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n<li><strong>New York state<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/current.org\/2025\/05\/new-york-increases-public-radio-support-amid-cpb-funding-threat\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">increases funding for public radio<\/a> in response to <strong>CPB<\/strong> funding threat\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n<li>A look into the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.techpolicy.press\/between-borders-and-lies-factcheckers-on-navigating-the-indiapakistan-conflict\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">information war<\/a> amid the <strong>India-Pakistan conflict<\/strong>\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n<li><strong>EU<\/strong> court <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/business\/2025\/05\/14\/europe-commission-court-text-message-leyen-pfizer\/78b203de-309e-11f0-8498-1f8214bba2d2_story.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">rules in favor of NYT journalist\u2019s request<\/a> for texts between EU chief and Pfizer CEO\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2025\/05\/14\/media\/smartmatic-accuses-fox-news-rupert-murdoch-destroying-evidence\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Smartmatic alleges Fox News destroyed text messages<\/a> in <strong>2020 election defamation case<\/strong>\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n<li><strong>Time\u2019s<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/2025\/05\/13\/time-longevity-franchise\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">new vertical \u201cTime Longevity\u201d<\/a> will focus on <strong>aging and the human lifespan<\/strong>\u00a0<\/li>\n\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\ud83d\udcc5\u00a0<strong>Looking ahead<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Both <strong>CNN<\/strong> and <strong>Fox<\/strong> this week announced new <strong>streaming services<\/strong> set to debut this fall. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/05\/13\/business\/media\/cnn-streaming-service.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CNN\u2019s foray into streaming<\/a> will be its second, after CNN+ was launched in 2022 and quickly shuttered after less than a month. Fox plans to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/05\/12\/fox-one-streaming-service-launch.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">launch its new service<\/a>, to be called Fox One, ahead of the National Football League season this year.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Moving toward streaming may be one way for these companies to avoid the revenue declines seen in traditional business models. CNN\u2019s chief executive, Mark Thompson, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/01\/23\/business\/media\/cnn-layoffs-mark-thompson.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">has said<\/a> that the company\u2019s \u201cfuture prospects will not be good\u201d if CNN does not follow its audiences to the new platforms they are using.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Audiences are largely getting news from digital platforms.<\/strong> Digital devices are by far the most common way Americans get news, with a large majority of U.S. adults (86%) saying they at least sometimes get news from a digital device, and more than half (58%) saying they prefer this way of getting news over any other. Meanwhile, 63% say they get news from television at least sometimes, while just 32% prefer TV, according to a <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/journalism\/fact-sheet\/news-platform-fact-sheet\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2024 Pew Research Center survey<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:25px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\ud83d\udcca\u00a0<strong>Chart of the week<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This week, our chart comes from our <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/journalism\/2025\/05\/13\/what-is-news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">new study<\/a> on how Americans define news. U.S. adults are most likely to say that whether something is factual (85%) or up to date (78%) is a major factor in thinking about whether it counts as news, according to the nationally representative survey portion of the study. Majorities also say that whether something is important to society (72%) or unbiased (68%) is critical in this regard.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Far fewer (29%) say whether something is interesting or relevant to them personally is a major factor in whether it is news, although personal importance or relevance came up often when online discussion board participants defined news.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img data-dominant-color=\"e3dedf\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #e3dedf;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"620\" height=\"862\"  srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2025\/05\/PJ_2025.05.13_what-is-news_0-03.webp?resize=480,667 480w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2025\/05\/PJ_2025.05.13_what-is-news_0-03.webp?resize=620,862 620w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 480px) 480px, (max-width: 782px) 782px, 640px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2025\/05\/PJ_2025.05.13_what-is-news_0-03.webp\" alt=\"Bar chart showing that information being factual and up to date are top factors for Americans in deciding if it counts as news.\" class=\"wp-image-239064 not-transparent\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:25px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>\ud83d\udc4b That&#8217;s all for this week.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Briefing is compiled by Pew Research Center staff, including Naomi Forman-Katz, Jacob Liedke, Christopher St. Aubin, Luxuan Wang and Emily Tomasik. It is edited by Michael Lipka and copy edited by Rebecca Leppert.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Do you like this newsletter? Email us at\u00a0<a href=\"mailto:journalism@pewresearch.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">journalism@pewresearch.org<\/a> or fill out this <a href=\"https:\/\/us1.list-manage.com\/survey?u=434f5d1199912232d416897e4&amp;id=449f3c3d35&amp;attribution=false\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/us1.list-manage.com\/survey?u=434f5d1199912232d416897e4&amp;id=449f3c3d35&amp;attribution=false\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">two-question survey<\/a> to tell us what you think<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u2600\ufe0f Happy Thursday!\u00a0The Briefing is your guide to the world of news and information. Sign up here! In today\u2019s email: \ud83d\udd25\u00a0Featured story Hasan Piker, a popular progressive streamer with millions of followers across YouTube and Twitch, said he was detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection recently after flying back to the U.S. Piker said [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":5595,"template":"","meta":{"sub_headline":"","sub_title":"","_prc_public_revisions":[],"_ppp_expiration_hours":0,"_ppp_enabled":false,"wpai_generated_summary":"","prc_watchers":[],"footnotes":"","prc_email_subject":"What do Americans think \u201cnews\u201d is?","prc_email_preview_text":"Plus, popular progressive news influencer says he was detained when re-entering U.S.","prc_email_template_slug":"","prc_email_mailchimp_audience_id":"","prc_email_mailchimp_segment_id":"","prc_email_mailchimp_campaign_id":"","prc_email_mailchimp_campaign_admin_url":"","prc_email_mailchimp_campaign_status":"","prc_email_mailchimp_pending_send_at":"","prc_email_mailchimp_delayed_send_cancelled":""},"categories":[],"bylines":[],"prc_newsletter_list":[3083],"_post_visibility":[2643],"formats":[],"workflow-status":[],"class_list":["post-311688","prc_email_campaign","type-prc_email_campaign","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","_post_visibility-hidden-on-index"],"label":"Newsletter","post_parent":0,"word_count":770,"canonical_url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/newsletter\/the-briefing\/what-do-americans-think-news-is\/","charts":[],"art_direction":{"A1":{"id":"5595","rawUrl":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/07\/briefing_featured_image_2-1.png","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/07\/briefing_featured_image_2-1.png?w=564&h=317&crop=1","width":564,"height":317,"chartArt":false},"A2":{"id":"5595","rawUrl":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/07\/briefing_featured_image_2-1.png","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/07\/briefing_featured_image_2-1.png?w=268&h=151&crop=1","width":268,"height":151,"chartArt":false},"A3":{"id":"5595","rawUrl":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/07\/briefing_featured_image_2-1.png","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/07\/briefing_featured_image_2-1.png?w=194&h=110&crop=1","width":194,"height":110,"chartArt":false},"A4":{"id":"5595","rawUrl":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/07\/briefing_featured_image_2-1.png","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/07\/briefing_featured_image_2-1.png?w=268&h=151&crop=1","width":268,"height":151,"chartArt":false},"XL":{"id":"5595","rawUrl":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/07\/briefing_featured_image_2-1.png","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/07\/briefing_featured_image_2-1.png?w=720&h=405&crop=1","width":720,"height":405,"chartArt":false},"social":{"id":"5595","rawUrl":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/07\/briefing_featured_image_2-1.png","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/07\/briefing_featured_image_2-1.png?w=1200&h=628&crop=1","width":1200,"height":628,"chartArt":false}},"_embeds":[],"prc_checklist":{},"watchChildPosts":false,"watchers":[],"table_of_contents":[],"datacite_doi":"","prc_seo_data":{"title":"What do Americans think \u201cnews\u201d is?","description":"\u2600\ufe0f Happy Thursday!\u00a0The Briefing is your guide to the world of news and information. 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