International Entertainment News: Troubles for Traditional Media

Troubles for Traditional Media - Both Print and Television

New 24/7 Wall St./Harris Poll on American media finds over half of adults believe traditional media as we know it will no longer exist in 10 years

NEW YORK, Oct. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Traditional media is in trouble. Newspapers are struggling with circulation and magazines like Newsweek are being sold for $1. And, while two-thirds of Americans (67%) still agree that they prefer to get their news in more traditional ways such as network television and/or reading newspapers or magazines in print, over half of Americans (55%) say traditional media as we currently know it will no longer exist in ten years. Additionally, half of U.S. adults (50%) say they tend to get almost all their news online.

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These are some of the findings ofa new 24/7 Wall St./Harris Poll surveyof 2,095 U.S. adults surveyed online between October 8 and 12, 2010 by Harris Interactive.

Focusing on specific media sources, when Americans are looking for news, almost half (46%) say they go to local television news all the time while about one-third say they go to local newspapers (35%) and network television news (31%). Two in five adults, however, say they never go to national newspapers like the New York Times or weekly news magazines (42% each) when they are looking for news.

Additionally, in looking at the amount of time people are spending with print media, one-quarter of adults say over the past year, the time they have spent reading newspapers in print and reading magazines in print has declined (25% and 23% respectively). Conversely, three in ten adults (28%) say the time they have spent visiting online news and information sites has increased over the past year.

Age matters for media consumption

One reason traditional media should be worried is that media consumption and attitudes towards media are very different by age. Only one-third (33%) of those 55 and older say they tend to get almost all their news online compared to almost two-thirds (65%) of those 18-34 years old. And, while four in five of those 55 and older (81%) prefer to get their news in more traditional ways, just over half of 18-34 year olds (57%) feel the same way.

Where people go for news also changes by age. Adults 55 and older are much more likely than 18-34 year olds to go to local television news all the time or occasionally (88% vs. 63%) and to local newspapers (81% vs. 56%) when they are looking for news. However over half of 18-34 year olds go to websites that aggregate news (52%) compared to two in five adults 55 and older (39%).

Network TV versus Cable TV versus watching online

Besides traditional print media, network television also has to face many battles - both against people watching more television online and watching more cable television shows. Currently, two-thirds of Americans (67%) say they watch television shows primarily on television, while 5% watch them primarily or mostly on their computer. If this is examined by age, again, there is a large difference with over four in five adults 55 and older watching primarily on television (84%) compared to less than half of those 18-34 (48%).

When it comes to cable versus network television, there is an even split. Three in ten Americans (30%) say they watch shows primarily or mostly on network TV while three in ten say they watch shows primarily or mostly on cable (29%); one-third (36%) watch cable and network shows equally. While four in five U.S. adults (82%) believe that network television shows will always be a large part of Americans' viewing habits, two-thirds (65%) believe people will watch more television on cable than on the networks in the near future. One reason may be quality. Over half of Americans (51%) say cable television shows are much higher quality than network television shows.

So What?

While they might not have abandoned print media or network television completely, Americans are welcoming and embracing other media in leaps and bounds. And, as one might expect, younger Americans are setting the pace as they are getting their news online and not through local newspapers. In fact, for local newspapers, readership is clearly being driven by those who are 45 and older. Traditional media may need to reinvent themselves to give younger Americans a reason to buy local papers or turn on their local news. Network television may not be in as much trouble as print, but they also have to watch their backs as cable television is clearly winning eyes and the counter-programming they did that was once mocked by the networks is now being copied.

TABLE 1
OPINIONS ABOUT NEWS
"Thinking about news and information in general, please indicate how
strongly you agree or disagree with each of the following
statements."
Base: All U.S. adults online

Agree Strongly Somewhat Disagree Somewhat Strongly Not
(NET) agree agree (NET) disagree disagree applicable
% % % % % % %
While
printed
news will
continue
to
decline,
there will
always be
a need for
newspapers
in print. 81 37 44 17 14 3 3
I prefer to
get my
news in
more
traditional
ways such
as network
television
and/or
reading
newspapers
or
magazines
in print. 67 33 34 29 21 8 3
Traditional
media as we
currently
know it
will no
longer
exist in 10
years. 55 15 40 42 33 10 3
I tend to
get almost
all my
news
online. 50 22 28 47 27 20 3
The day of
the
printed
newspaper
is gone. 43 10 33 54 36 18 2