Searching for News: The Flint water crisis
Many Americans turned to Google to learn about the Flint water crisis. An analysis of aggregated searches over time illustrates how, in today’s digital environment, public interest shifts as a story unfolds.
Searching for News
Many Americans turned to Google to learn about the Flint water crisis. An analysis of aggregated searches over time illustrates how, in today’s digital environment, public interest shifts as a story unfolds.
Civic Engagement Strongly Tied to Local News Habits
Americans who are highly attached to their communities and who always vote in local elections stand out for displaying stronger local news habits than those less engaged.
Despite Some Warning Signs, Local TV Stations Are Hot Commodities
While the economics of local television are stronger than those of the newspaper industry, a new Pew Research Center report analyzes why some trends in local television news may be worrisome.
Local TV: Audience Declines as Revenue Bounces Back
The long slow decline in viewership of local television news resumed in 2012 after a brief respite the previous year. While stations devoted more of their available air time to local news, that wasn’t sufficient to halt the decline in viewership. Early-morning newscasts continued to gain viewers, but that increase was more than offset by losses in most other time slots.
How People Get Local News and Information in Different Communities
Depending on the local news topic, urban residents are more likely to use mobile and online sources, while suburbanites are most heavily into social media and rural residents are more inclined to word of mouth sources. A joint PEJ-Pew Internet report offers more about how people get local news in specific communities.
72% of Americans Follow Local News Closely
Local news enthusiasts follow a diverse set of topics, but rely heavily on local newspapers to keep them informed, according to a survey by the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism and Internet & American Life Project that examined the ways people get news and information about 16 different topics, ranging from breaking news to weather.
How People Learn About Their Local Community
How do people get news and information about the community where they live? Traditional research has suggested that Americans watch local TV news more than any other local information source. But a new report by the PEJ and the Pew Internet and American Life Project, in association with the Knight Foundation offers a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of the ecosystem of community information.
Media Coverage of City Governments
As the media landscape shifts, where can people turn for coverage of local news subjects, particularly government and public affairs? A new study conducted by a team of Michigan State University researchers, examines 175 communities and finds the majority of news about local government still comes from newspapers. But in many cases it is weeklies not dailies providing the most coverage. PEJ offers a summary of their findings.
Hiding in Plain Sight, From Kennedy to Brown
The race for Ted Kennedy’s Massachusetts Senate seat began largely drama-free and little-covered and ended as the most surprising and intensely-covered political story in the country. Which candidate got the most favorable attention? How did coverage change over time? How did the local Boston papers differ in their reporting? A new study examines newspaper coverage of the race.
