Diverse, Young and Informed: Today’s Growing News Audience
More and more, as we navigate through COVID-19, unprecedented political and social unrest, unpredictable weather events, and now a big resurgence in sports, we go to the news to get local information that we trust. TV news viewing was on a meteoric rise as the COVID-19 pandemic swept through the U.S. While that rise was soon followed by a steady leveling off, news consumption still remains a much larger part of the TV viewing day. The question is, will these levels be maintained? While no one knows for sure, the upcoming events—a presidential election, continued focus on COVID-19, more sports, and the holiday season, indicate that consumption of local news will remain strong.
This begs the question, how will local stations, major networks, and brand marketers plan for the future? And the answer is, follow the data. This report takes a deeper look at TV news across various entities and how they have grown.