Where do you get your news?
Working in public relations, I’m always eager to know where people access news and why.
Since starting my bachelor’s degree at university (I’m not going to mention the year here, but think the same year Facebook launched), I’ve been told that the media landscape is shifting and traditional news platforms such as newspaper, television news and radio were losing their footing, as online and digital media becomes king.
And, from having worked in the media for the past decade or so, it’s obvious that there is definitely some truth to this. However, it’s been fascinating to read through some new research released by Roy Morgan late last week, which found that in Australia, television is still the platform in which most Australians get their news.
According to a press release issued by the market research company, “New research from Roy Morgan reveals over 13 million Australians (65.6%) now say TV is the main source of news including over 12.6 million (62.3%) specifically nominating free-to-air TV. In addition, TV is regarded as the most trusted source of news by nearly 7.5 million Australians (36.7%) – ahead of any other forms of competing for traditional or digital media.”
The second most utilised source of news, according to the Roy Morgan research is the internet, with 11.7 million Australian’s citing the internet as their main source of news. Of this group, 7.5 million said that social media is their main news source. It seems my uni lecturers were definitely onto something when they advised that the internet and social media might become king (Side note: I wonder where they are accessing their news?).
Breaking down their data further, Roy Morgan outlined in a press release that age and the generation you grew up in plays a role in the way you access news.
According to Roy Morgan, Four-out-of-five Baby Boomers (80%) and Pre-Boomers (81.7%) say free-to-air TV is the main source of news for them and nearly as many in Generation X (70.7%) nominate free-to-air TV as the main news source.
“However, the popularity of free-to-air TV drops away significantly for younger generations. Only 49.8% of Millennials and 41.1% of Generation Z say free-to-air TV is a main source of news.”
Through the research, Roy Morgan identified that the biggest contrast was between the Baby Boomer and Pre-Boomer generations and the Millennial and Generation Z groups.
While TV is the main source of news for the Boomers, two-thirds of Millennials (75.6%) and close to two-thirds of Generation Z (72.5%) identified the Internet is a main source of news ahead of other forms of media including free-to-air TV.
The leading source of news online for the younger generations is social media mentioned by 58.6% of Generation Z and 53.4% of Millennials.
Does Roy Morgan’s research reflect the way you access news?
Read more on how you can target your audiences through strategic media relations and tactics.
About the Author - Mark Henderson
Mark is a passionate storyteller and professional communicator. As a PR practitioner and media expert, Mark is driven by a desire to tell real stories and to deliver top quality, first-in-class, creative and effective public relations c...
