From the desk of Patrick Ward...
In a recent discussion, we looked at the role that news plays in a world where people consume content through multiple channels. We think there are new and growing opportunities for companies to become their own media channel.
This is the first discussion in a series about that opportunity. But before delving into the future, we thought it might be useful to understand the massive shift in news consumption and revisit the precipitous decline in the market share of traditional print media. Now, we understand that, for most of us, this isn’t news and most of us can intuit the dire condition of the daily newspaper and weekly magazine (alas, poor Newsweek, I knew you well) just by our own reading habits or the obvious emaciation of newspapers and magazines. But, nonetheless we thought it warranted some detail.
The Decline of the Newspaper
Newspaper readership has rapidly declined since the rise of online news portals. Ranked only behind local and national television outlets, online news sources have become the third most popular news source. A March 2010 report by the PEW Research Center found:
Who gets their news online?
Clearly, this trend is along generational lines. Younger people, of the GenX and Millennial age groups, are most likely to receive their news from online sources. This group is often more connected to mobile devices than their older counterparts, so getting news on-the-go is increasingly important. Although television is still their primary source of news, 53-59% access news online and only 24% read traditional newspapers. Again, that’s not news, but as companies examine how to reach that demographic or how to prepare for them as they age, it’s worth revisiting.
So where is the news coming from?
Whether on television, online, or in print, 92% of American adults say they access multiple sources for their news, with many accessing four to six sources per day. Online news readers are no different and often seek out news from multiple sources. Unsurprisingly, among online news sources, the most popular are aggregated news sources, led by Yahoo, CNN, and Google.
The consumption of news has not decreased, but transformed. The way in which people access the news is changing. With the convenience of laptops and mobile devices, many more readers are getting the news online and on their own time.
As consumer preferences for news organizations declines and sources become more proliferated, the power of the news brand has become compromised. Consumers are becoming less interested in the source of the news, so long as its credible. Much of that credibility is coming from friends who alert them within social networks, a trend we’ll examine in our next missive. But its also an opportunity for brands which consumer already trust to become direct source of information, a more interesting concept we’ll explore in a later installment.
In a recent discussion, we looked at the role that news plays in a world where people consume content through multiple channels. We think there are new and growing opportunities for companies to become their own media channel.
This is the first discussion in a series about that opportunity. But before delving into the future, we thought it might be useful to understand the massive shift in news consumption and revisit the precipitous decline in the market share of traditional print media. Now, we understand that, for most of us, this isn’t news and most of us can intuit the dire condition of the daily newspaper and weekly magazine (alas, poor Newsweek, I knew you well) just by our own reading habits or the obvious emaciation of newspapers and magazines. But, nonetheless we thought it warranted some detail.
The Decline of the Newspaper
Newspaper readership has rapidly declined since the rise of online news portals. Ranked only behind local and national television outlets, online news sources have become the third most popular news source. A March 2010 report by the PEW Research Center found:
- 78% of Americans say they get news from a local TV station.
- 73% say they get news from a national network such as CBS or cable TV station such as CNN or Fox News.
- 61% say they get some kind of news online.
- 54% say they listen to a radio news program at home or in the car.
- 50% say they read news in a local newspaper.
- 17% say they read news in a national newspaper such as the New York Times or USA Today.
Who gets their news online?
Clearly, this trend is along generational lines. Younger people, of the GenX and Millennial age groups, are most likely to receive their news from online sources. This group is often more connected to mobile devices than their older counterparts, so getting news on-the-go is increasingly important. Although television is still their primary source of news, 53-59% access news online and only 24% read traditional newspapers. Again, that’s not news, but as companies examine how to reach that demographic or how to prepare for them as they age, it’s worth revisiting.
So where is the news coming from?
Whether on television, online, or in print, 92% of American adults say they access multiple sources for their news, with many accessing four to six sources per day. Online news readers are no different and often seek out news from multiple sources. Unsurprisingly, among online news sources, the most popular are aggregated news sources, led by Yahoo, CNN, and Google.
The consumption of news has not decreased, but transformed. The way in which people access the news is changing. With the convenience of laptops and mobile devices, many more readers are getting the news online and on their own time.
As consumer preferences for news organizations declines and sources become more proliferated, the power of the news brand has become compromised. Consumers are becoming less interested in the source of the news, so long as its credible. Much of that credibility is coming from friends who alert them within social networks, a trend we’ll examine in our next missive. But its also an opportunity for brands which consumer already trust to become direct source of information, a more interesting concept we’ll explore in a later installment.
Its really true that people have lastly diverged their interest towards public networking. Examining information documents is merely an old style now.
Posted by: Marriage Counseling Jacksonville FL | May 18, 2012 at 01:45 AM
Its really true that people have finally diverged their attention towards social media. Reading news papers is merely an old fashion now.
Posted by: Henry Garcia | March 21, 2012 at 07:39 AM
Sharp ideas and thoughts you have here. I'll strongly recommend your site to all my friends who are still looking for this information.
Posted by: Seattle public relations firms | December 01, 2011 at 10:34 AM
The stats here are interesting. Interesting to see how the media works!
Posted by: Corporate Photography Eugene | June 23, 2010 at 05:43 AM