The Public's Source for News (1993-2013)
The chart below shows trend data from 28 national surveys conducted between 1993 to 2013 by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press. Pew asked American adults: "How do you get most of your news about national and international issues? Television, newspapers, radio, magazines, Internet." Television as a primary news source for the public has dropped from a high of 88% in January 1996 to a current level of 69%. Newspapers continue their decline as a source — they've fallen from a high of 63% in September 1995 to 28% currently, slipping from 31% in 2011 when Pew previously conducted this survey. Meantime, the internet has risen steadily — passing radio in July 2003, newspapers in December 2008, and continuing to close the gap with television. When Pew first included "the internet" in January 1999, only 6% of American adults named it as a source for news on national and international issues. In Pew's 2013 survey, 50% said they use the internet as a primary source for news, up from 43% in 2011.
Roll over years to display data. Drag several years to zoom the chart. Toggle a line by clicking an item in the legend.
Demographics
Total | ||||
Television | 69% | |||
Internet | 50% | |||
Newspapers | 28% | |||
Radio | 23% | |||
Magazines | 4% | |||
Other | 2% |
Age | ||||
18-29 | 30-49 | 50-64 | 65+ | |
Television | 55% | 63% | 77% | 84% |
Internet | 71% | 63% | 38% | 18% |
Newspapers | 22% | 18% | 29% | 54% |
Radio | 19% | 27% | 20% | 15% |