Despite a slew of major international stories, including a trade war that’s having a major impact on the U.S. economy, a new survey suggests that Americans are turning inward with little or no interest in foreign news.
When they do access international news, the respondents said, TV was their most trusted source.
The survey from SmartNews found seven in 10 Americans (71%) consume little to no foreign news (news coverage about countries outside of the U.S.). That figure broke down to 47% consuming less than 30 minutes a day and 24% never consuming foreign news. In contrast, 63% of all respondents report consuming 30 minutes or more of U.S. national news each day.
Nearly half of Americans (46%) said when they do consume foreign news, they are closely watching news from Europe followed by the Middle East, Canada, Mexico, Asia and Africa. Roughly half of Americans (51%) identified economic issues and military conflicts are the leading global topics capturing their attention.
About four in 10 of all respondents (41%) cited TV news as the most trusted foreign news source. Less than a quarter (22%) chose cable news channels (e.g., CNN, Fox News) as the most trustworthy source, while 19% chose network TV (e.g., ABC, NBC).
When asked which news outlet they believe provides the most trustworthy foreign news coverage, respondents most frequently chose BBC, followed by CNN and Fox News, SmartNews reported.
Social media is the most popular source of international news, with 35% of all respondents using social media to get foreign news. This is followed by network TV and cable news channels —both of which are watched by 29% of all respondents for foreign news.
While social media is the most-used platform for foreign news, only 19% of respondents trust it, highlighting a significant gap between usage and credibility.
The survey also found that younger generations are more interested than their elders in foreign news. More than one-third (36%) of millennials and 34% of Generation Z consumers spend 30 minutes or more each day consuming international news. In contrast, only 26% of Generation X and 24% of baby boomers spend this same amount of time reading foreign news each day.
When asked why they weren’t accessing international news, the top reason by far was lack of interest, with 40% using that explanation. One in 10 of respondents (10%) indicated that they were more concerned with what is happening in the United States than with international events. Just 6% of respondents don’t read foreign news because they said it was too stressful or caused a negative mental health reaction.
This survey of 1,284 U.S. adults was conducted on April 7.
More information about SmartNews is available here.
