The bottom line: The rise of digital media and technology has transformed the way we access our news and entertainment.
The short story: The transition of the news industry away from print, television, and radio into digital spaces has caused huge disruptions in the traditional news industry, especially the print news industry. It is also reflected in the ways individual Americans say they are getting their news. Today, an overwhelming majority of Americans get news at least some of the time from digital devices.
Read More: Consumption across platforms
A large majority of U.S. adults (86%) say they often or sometimes get news from a smartphone, computer or tablet, including 56% who say they do so often. This is more than the 49% who said they often got news from digital devices in 2022 and the 51% of those who said the same in 2021. The portion that gets news from digital devices continues to outpace those who get news from television. The portion of Americans who often get news from television has stayed fairly consistent, at 31% in 2022 and 32% in 2023. Americans turn to radio and print publications for news far less frequently than to digital devices and television.
When asked which of these platforms they prefer to get news on, nearly six in ten Americans say they prefer a digital device (58%), more than say they prefer TV (27%). Even fewer Americans prefer radio (6%) or print (5%).
News across digital platforms
Though digital devices are by far the most common way Americans access their news, where they get that news on their devices is divided among a number of different pathways. Today, news websites, apps and search engines are the digital pathways most Americans get news from at least sometimes. Half of Americans at least sometimes get news from social media, and three-in-ten say the same of podcasts.
Among digital platforms, news websites or apps are also the most preferred source for news: A quarter of U.S. adults prefer to get their news this way, compared with 15% who prefer search, 12% who prefer social media and 6% who say they prefer podcasts.
News consumption on social media
When it comes to where Americans regularly get news on social media, Facebook outpaces all other social media sites. Three-in-ten U.S. adults say they regularly get news there. Slightly fewer (26%) regularly get news on YouTube.
Smaller shares regularly get news on Instagram (16%), TikTok (14%), X (12%) or Reddit (8%). Even fewer Americans regularly get news on Nextdoor (5%), LinkedIn (5%), Snapchat (4%), WhatsApp (3%) or Twitch (1%).
Who uses each news platform
News consumption across platforms varies by age, gender, race, ethnicity, educational attainment and political leaning. Americans ages 50 and older are more likely than younger adults to turn to and prefer television and print publications.
Sources: Pew Research Center Survey of U.S. adults conducted Sept. 25-Oct. 1, 2023, Pew Research Center’s American Trends Panel September 2023
