The Pew-Knight initiative has revealed more about readers’ habits and the type of person most likely to buy a news subscription or make a donation.
The Pew Research Foundation surveyed more than 3,500 people and found that 8% of Americans say people have a responsibility to pay for news.
The research found that 11% of Democrats or those who lean toward the Democrat party say people have the responsibility to pay for some news, while 5% of Republicans do. College graduates and upper-income individuals are most likely to feel responsible for paying, with both cohorts at 14%. Only 4% of adults aged 29 or younger shared the belief.
According to Pew researcher Kirsten Eddy, this was the first time Pew asked people about their feelings toward a responsibility to support news with their wallets.
“In general, what we find here in terms of belief about a responsibility to pay for news aligns with what we’ve seen in the past: When we’ve asked Americans who say they don’t pay for news why they don’t, the two most common responses are that there is plenty of other free news out there, or they’re not interested enough to pay,” Eddy said.
Pew explored views about paying for news in focus groups. One woman in her 20s told researchers, “I don’t think that information should be a privilege.” A woman in her 50s said, “I don’t pay to go to church, to get a spiritual message, you know? And if you’re true, and your mission is to relay facts that are fundamentally important for people’s well-being, do I need to pay you for that?”
Another study participant said he felt paying for news was a luxury, and that he could get news from free sources or use search engines to find answers.
Others noted subscription fatigue from being asked to pay for access to multiple news sources, including independent journalists on platforms such as Substack.
“I can’t do $5 for 20 people,” one participant said. “That’s a lot. It adds up.”
On the other side of that coin, a man in his 60s said, “I think somebody must pay those journalists. Somebody has to — it’s costly to travel around. It’s mostly to report the news. And so, I think it’s good for our society that we have reliable, objective journalism.”
The research found that 16% said they have paid for news in the past year, whether through subscriptions, memberships or donations.
On the larger issue of general feelings toward the news, Pew’s research found that people feel overwhelmed and skeptical.
The research found that 52% of people are “worn out” by the amount of news today. At the same time, most people believe they have a responsibility to be informed when they vote. And roughly half of those studied say they can stay informed with the news even if they don’t actively follow it.
“People feel the onus is on news consumers to check whether the news they get is accurate,” Pew’s research stated. “Americans have far more confidence in their own ability to do this than in other people’s ability.”
The study also noted that most adults say it’s extremely or very important for people to avoid sharing inaccurate information, but fewer people say it’s highly important to get news from multiple sources or from sources with a range of political views.
Bob Miller has spent more than 25 years in local newsrooms, including 12 years as an executive editor with Rust Communications. Bob also produces an independent true crime investigative podcast called The Lawless Files.
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CollegeGuy
Useful article that covers all of the bases. I'm surprised you don't get more comments on your site, as there is a lot of good content here. In any case, I think people are largely conditioned by social media to seek out "national" or "celebrity" news, or other news with entertainment value. So that local weekly with the story about the town sewer district or school board election is suddenly unsexy.
Wednesday, April 29 Report this