Newspapers Lose Print Readership, Gain Online Readership
By Anna Johnson on April 30th, 2009New research by the Center for the Digital Future at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication shows that Internet users are spending more time reading online newspapers.
The Center for the Digital Future’s study, the Digital Future Project, reveals that U.S. Internet users read online newspapers for a record 53 minutes per week in 2008, significantly higher than the average of 41 minutes per week in 2007.
It seems, however, that U.S. Internet users’ increased interest in reading online newspapers comes at the expense of reading printed newspapers and magazines. The Center for the Digital Future found that 22 percent of users said they stopped their subscription to a printed newspaper or magazine because they could access the same content online.
“The most significant trend about how Americans are changing their news reading habits may be found in comparing the use of online media by light users vs. heavy users,” said Center director Jeffrey I. Cole. “Heavy Internet users spent 65 more minutes per week reading online newspapers than do light users.
Indeed, Mr Cole predicts that the end of the printed daily newspaper is nigh.
“We’re clearly now seeing a path to the end of the printed daily newspapers – a trend that is escalating much faster than we had anticipated,” he said. “The decline of newspapers is happening at a pace they never could have anticipated. Their cushion is gone, and only those papers that can move decisively to the Web will survive.”
Cole cited four primary reasons for the rapid decline of printed newspapers: the loss of newspaper classified advertising to the digital realm, concerns about the environmental impact of newspapers, the economic downturn, and no prospects for new readers.
The Center for the Digital Future has conducted equivalent research in some 23 other countries and found similar trends. Interestingly, it seems that when 30 percent of a given country’s population is using the Internet, newspaper use begins to decline.
The ‘news’ isn’t all bad. Research by the Center for the Digital Future also indicates that younger generations and, in particular, teenagers are more interested in the news than older generations.
Consequently, newspapers have the opportunity to capitalize on this greater appetite for news… they just need to provide it online.
For more information about the 2009 Digital Future Project visit the Center for the Digital Future’s website.
