Published: August 04, 1999
Last Updated: August 10, 1999
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• Sample Characteristics • Community involvement • Frequency of news needs • Media consumption patterns • Evaluations of news sources • Perceptions of own newspaper contact with readers The research that supports these findings included three major components: 1 A national survey of 3,000 telephone interviews (23 minutes on average, and completed in April and May 1998) stratified to provide a random, representative sample of not only the five major census regions of the U.S., but also of the four county-size designations within each, with the complete database weighted against Census statistics to be projectable to 197,344,000 U.S. adults 2 A series of 16 "validation" focus groups (completed in August 1998) in which initial findings drawn from the quantitative survey were discussed and commented upon by groups of loyal, occasional and Sunday-only readers of newspapers. 3 A self-administered 12-page questionnaire completed (in May and June 1998) by a random, stratified sample of 1,714 journalists working at U.S. newspapers with daily circulation of 5,000 or more. This report summarizes the major findings of all three phases of the research: including not only the quantitative data from the national and newsroom surveys, but the qualitative richness of newsroom comments and quotes from the focus groups as well. The issues raised in this report will help editors review their practices and standards, and the data will provide a baseline against which the effectiveness of new approaches to build journalism credibility can be evaluated. Sample characteristics The public sample: Great care was taken in the public survey to provide adequate representation of all key geographic and demographic segments of the U.S. adult population — with particular attention to inclusion of adults living in smaller towns or rural communities (e.g., Nielsen counties C and D), a subgroup not typically included in polls of smaller sample size or breadth. Overall, the public described in this report (Table 53) presents the following profile of the U.S. adult population: A median age of 42 years. 34 percent of adults with a college degree. 40 percent employed in white-collar occupations. 84 percent white, 9 percent African-American. 35 percent reporting affiliation with the Democratic party (31 percent Republican). Living in households with a median income of $47,300 a year. Adults living in urban or suburban areas (e.g., Nielsen counties A or B) are more likely to be upscale in education, occupation and income than are those living in less densely populated areas. The newsroom sample: The initial sampling frame for the newsroom survey was composed of a randomly chosen set of newspapers selected to represent dailies of various sizes and geographic areas across the U.S. Responses were obtained from 78 different newspapers: 33 percent working at big newspapers (daily circulation of 250,000 or more). 31 percent in mid-size newspapers (100,000 to 250,000). 36 percent from smaller newspapers (under 100,000). While the 1,714 journalists that responded to this survey cannot be characterized as truly random, representative newsroom sample, the data do contain responses from journalists in a variety of jobs: 9 percent of respondents were editors, managing editors or assistant managing editors. 38 percent were mid-level editors (including the copy desk, section editors, graphics/photo editors and editorial page editors). 46 percent were staff (including both general assignment and specialized reporters, photographers, designers and columnists). As would be expected, the work force at smaller newspapers skews younger (with a median age of 37), and has less tenure in journalism than is evident among journalists employed at large newspapers (52 percent of the newsroom in big newspapers have been journalists for 20 years or more, vs. 24 percent of the smaller papers’ newsrooms). At the bigger papers, 61 percent of newsroom respondents described themselves as Democrats (or leaning toward Democrat) and only 10 percent as Republicans (or leaning toward Republican). At small papers, the number of Democrats (and leaners) drops to 48 percent and Republicans (and leaners) rises to 21 percent. As noted earlier in this report, the demographic profile of the newsroom sample preordains some of the demographic differences that would characterize professionals vs. the public at large (Table 54). Forty-two percent of the newsroom sample has previously been employed as a journalist at other than a daily newspaper (a weekly, wire service or radio station were most often mentioned). Twelve percent of them had, at some time in their lives, worked in clerical, sales, service or blue-collar jobs. Community involvement The public sample: Behaviorally, U.S. adults report high levels of involvement in their communities, with more than half having volunteered at a school, church or other non-political organization with the last year — a behavior more prevalent among white-collar adults (at 61 percent participation) than blue-collar adults (at 48 percent). There are similar directional differences for other measures of involvement (Table 55), with upscale adults being more likely to contact elected officials or local media outlets. While adults under 25 are the most likely to have called a radio talk show within the past year (12 percent), the highest levels of participation for all activities measured was among adults 35-54 years old. The newsroom sample: While journalists responding to this survey were not asked about their level of community involvement, the 1997 ASNE study "The Newspaper Journalists of the ‘90s" found that "newsroom people seem to be falling away from personal participation in their communities, which is ironic in light of the new levels of civic journalism-fueled involvement that many newspapers are experiencing in the 1990s." Fifty-five percent of the journalists in that study said they were less involved in community life or organizations than the public, and of those who were involved, most were mid- to upper-level editors. Frequency of news needs The public sample: A logical reason supporting widespread consumption of local newspapers and television news broadcasts is the fact that 74 percent of adults say they need "news of their own city or town" on a daily basis — a level of news demand significantly higher than that reported for national or world news (Table 56). As would be expected from the large body of readership information already available, the frequency with which each type of news is desired is intensified among "heavy" consumers of news media, and among older adults. A more interesting finding might be that adults in urban and suburban areas are likely to feel the need for local, national, business and world news more often than do adults living in smaller communities or rural areas. Media consumption patterns The public sample: Critical to meaningful analysis of various subgroups’ perceptions of media credibility is a clear understanding of these adults’ overall media usage patterns, and the underlying pattern of their news demand and media preferences (Table 57, Table 58, and Table 59). First, it’s evident from these data that local media sources are most widely accessed on a typical workday (Monday through Friday), with: 79 percent of all adults saying they watch the local TV evening news. 72 percent reading their local newspaper (76 percent the Sunday edition). Similarly strong levels of reach (67 percent) for the network evening news on TV. The individual media formats can be aggregated to create a rough segmentation of the media market, distinguishing between "heavy" (32 percent of adults), "medium" (49 percent) and "light" (19 percent) media consumers for later comparison and analysis. Those under 35 are much more likely than older adults to get news from use of the Internet/online services or readership of a national newspaper. In general, when compared to either "medium or "light" media consumers, the "heavy" consumers of news media are: Significantly older. More likely to be women. More likely to live in households with higher annual incomes. Higher levels of media consumption are also related to higher levels of community involvement with both volunteer activities and the likelihood of contacting elected officials and editors. The newsroom sample: There’s a huge difference in the number and type of news media that journalists use compared to average Americans (Table 60). Despite a slightly different measure being used, the public’s news consumption on "a typical weekday" can be compared to the 4-5 times a week frequency "within a typical Monday through Friday" period as asked in the newsroom survey. Public Sample (on typical workday, M-F) Newsroom Sample (4-5 times in typical week, M-F) Watch local TV news in the evening 79% 36% Watch network evening news 67 21 Watch TV news in the morning 46 24 Watch "Nightline" 39 5 Watch TV news-magazine programs 77 38 While the most obvious difference is the fact that over 90 percent of the journalists surveyed said they read their daily newspaper (vs. 79 percent of the public), the most important difference is the fact that the vast majority of Americans watch TV news and the journalists don’t (See table above). Further, when asked how many times a week they watched TV news (morning, evening local, evening network), many journalists felt compelled to write-in "never!" and express their pride with comments ranging from: "I never watch TV news. I read The New York Times six or seven days a week." "I don’t watch the morning news, and I don’t watch ‘Nightline’." "I prefer to read magazines to satisfy my need for knowledge of political and world events." "I do not watch television junk." It’s important to unbundle the category of TV news to understand these news consumption habits. When asked, the public’s most-often repeated benefit of morning and evening TV news broadcasts is "convenience" while in recent years, media researchers have heard "Nightline" praised frequently for its credibility. In this research, 39 percent of the public reports watching Ted Koppel’s "Nightline" on a typical workday, while only 5 percent of print journalists watch the program as frequently. The reasons people give for trusting it are: Koppel is smart, and asks good questions. The show offers more than 30-second sound bites with newsmakers. Stories are presented with context and argument. These are the very qualities that some journalists would argue should be the unique province of newspapers, but then, most don’t see the show regularly. Journalists working at smaller papers are more likely to exhibit media usage patterns that are closer to those of the public at large (e.g., watching TV news, reading USA Today). Journalists at bigger papers are more likely to use the Internet, listen to National Public Radio and read The Wall Street Journal than are their colleagues at smaller papers (or the public at large). Evaluations of news sources The public sample: All respondents in the national survey were asked which media format they felt was their "primary source" for local, national and international news (Table 61). While newspapers enjoy a strong franchise as the primary provider of local news, television is the medium that dominates in: World news. National news. As the medium that U.S. adults rely on most to stay informed. "Heavy" media consumers tend to be much more newspaper-oriented than others (e.g., 62 percent of them relying on newspapers as their primary source of local news, and 35 percent saying it’s the medium they rely on most to stay informed). In no case, however, does their richer appetite of interests or media diet violate the overall national pattern favoring TV news. One of the most intriguing questions was "which of the news media do you trust the most when you hear conflicting versions of the same news story?" In response to this question: 34 percent of adults said they’d trust television/cable the most. 27 percent said they’d trust newspapers (a group that’s distinctly older and more upscale than those that trust TV most), and (most notably) 13 percent said they’d trust "none of them." With only insignificant variations, this response pattern is stable: holding true for adults of all demographic, geographic and residence segments. The newsroom sample: Further evidence of newspaper journalists’ distaste for network or local TV news programming is seen in the abysmally low scores with which they rate broadcast news (Table 62). Although journalists tend to be "hard graders" overall, more than two-thirds laud the following as doing an "excellent" or "good" job: The Wall Street Journal National Public Radio CNN Newsweekly magazines Their own newspaper By contrast, 52 percent see local TV news as doing a "poor" job. Compared with other news media, then, journalists rank their own newspaper’s coverage fifth after The Wall Street Journal, CNN, National Public Radio and daily newspapers overall. Top editors, managing editors and assistant managing editors are also less likely to give other media formats high marks. Journalists at smaller papers were more critical of their own newspapers as well, with 66 percent of them giving "excellent" or "good" ratings to their own newspapers (vs. 71 percent of journalists at mid-sized papers and 76 percent at large papers). More specifically, journalists tended to give their own newspapers the highest ratings for coverage of news close to home (Table 63). Seventy-eight percent evaluate their paper’s coverage of local political and government news as "excellent" or "good," with more than two-thirds awarding similar ratings to its coverage of non-government local news, entertainment coverage and lists, and pro and college sports. More than half call their paper’s coverage of national and international news "fair" or "poor," with top editors consistently more critical than their staffs. Perceptions of own newspaper The newsroom sample: Two-thirds of journalists admitted that their own newspaper has an "on-again/off-again" connection with its readers. (Table 64). One journalist, who checked the box saying that his newspaper "connects very well," added the parenthetical comment: "Non-readers are the problem." In general, most journalists sense a tentative link with their readers and find the quality of their own newspapers underwhelming. Fewer than half of journalists believe their papers: Are usually very interesting to read (39 percent). Are improving (47 percent). Are connecting very well with readers (21 percent). Are publishing editorials that are "pretty much in sync with readers" (35 percent). Those closest to the action (reporters and photographers) are even more critical of their paper’s ability to connect with readers than are editors calling the shots from inside the conference room. While 63 percent of top editors think their papers are improving, 47 percent of mid-level editors and 44 percent of the staff perceive that positive momentum. Further, journalists at small papers feel more strongly that they connect well with their readers (29 percent vs. 17 percent of mid-size papers and 15 percent of large papers), and that their editorials are pretty much in sync with readers (47 percent vs. 27 percent of mid-size papers and 30 percent of large papers). Despite this, these self-evaluations seem weak for newspapers that serve towns in which residents make a point of knowing everybody else’s business. Contact with readers The newsroom sample: Next to the section of the newsroom questionnaire titled "Personal Experience," one journalist added the self-evident, "Personal experience assumes contact with readers." The sample questions asked about the frequency with which journalists spoke to or e-mailed readers. (Table 65). Overall, 51 percent of journalists surveyed reported contact with readers more than once a week (71 percent of reporters/photographers, 55 percent of mid-level editors and 76 percent of managing editors and assistant managing editors. Clearly, copy editors, designers and others working behind the scenes have little opportunity to deal directly with readers. Still, it’s worth noting that 20 percent of the newsroom has less than monthly contact with the public it claims to serve.