A new poll from Harris Interactive has found 77 percent of adults say they watch local television news and 71 percent say they watch network broadcast or cable news several times a week or daily.
The high usage of television as the preferred news medium stands in stark contrast to the 19 percent of U.S. adults who say they listen to satellite news programming or 18 percent who read a national newspaper several times a week or daily.
Adults also get their news several times a week or daily by going online (64 percent), reading a local daily newspaper (63 percent), listening to radio news broadcasts (54 percent) and listening to talk radio stations (37 percent). Age seems to play an important role in media usage. The survey found:
- Those 59 years of age and older, called “Matures” by Harris, are most likely to rely on more traditional media outlets for information, with 88 percent saying they watch local broadcast news; the same percentage watch network broadcast or cable news and 80 percent read a local daily newspaper several times a week or daily.
- Baby boomers (40 to 58 years of age) use the most varied types of media, with at least one in five boomers using each medium examined several times a week or daily. Along with Matures, Baby Boomers are most likely to watch both local and broadcast or cable television newscasts (83 percent and 74 percent, respectively), read local daily newspapers (66 percent) and listen to radio newscasts (64 percent) and talk radio (40 percent). Boomers and Gen Xers (28 to 39 years of age) are most likely to go online for news (68 percent and 70 percent, respectively).
- Generation Xers are most likely to get their news several times a week or daily from local broadcast stations (69 percent) or online sources (68 percent).
- Echo boomers (those 18 to 27 years of age) are the least frequent users of media, with only about half or less getting information several times a week or daily from each of the media types measured.
The results come from a Harris Interactive poll of 2985 U.S. adults conducted between Jan. 12-17, 2006.
For more information, visit www.harrisinteractive.com.
