Television, Internet the choice for news readers

More people are turning to the television and to the Internet for their news headlines according to a recent Harris Poll. Researchers polled users in America, Australia and five European countries and found that only 6% to 13% rely on newspapers for their information. This is a decline over past numbers.

by Kristina Knight

Only about 48% of German and Spanish adults, 39% of US readers and 35% of British read the newspaper. Italy (34%), Australia (33%) and France (26%) are also showing a declining newspaper readership.

Comparatively, online and television news sources are showing an increase in users. More than half of users in Spain (58%), the US (56%) and France (54%) choose to go online for news and information. Meanwhile 50% of users in Australia and Germany choose online news hubs and a staggering 74% of Italians choose online news sources. Just over 30% of British users choose online portals for news.

Armed with this information, advertisers can take advantage, especially on the local level. Local advertisers would be smart to advertise their products or services with local information hubs. National and regional brands can have the same impact. Sponsoring a top news or weather section would give advertisers even more of an advantage over their competition.