Fewer Americans are closely following news about the presidential campaign than four years ago, the Pew Research Center has found. But of those who are, most are getting their information from cable news.
This latest Pew study, among a national sample of 1,507 adults, was conducted between Jan. 4-8, smack dab in between the Iowa and New Hampshire GOP contests, when the cable news channels programmed little else. If this poll is done, say, between Oct. 4-8, you’ll see local news as more of a source for coverage as more local and statewide races will make the news. The drop in the impact of other news sources is also due to the fact that four years ago there were two closely watched primary contests, not just one. But this doesn’t bode well for local newspapers and TV: their drop from 8 years ago, has been the Internet’s gain.
Back to the cablers, not surprisingly, when asked where they get most of their campaign news, Pew found, “far more Republicans than Democrats cite Fox News, while Democrats are much more likely than Republicans to cite CNN and MSNBC.”
Much more in the full report. Click here.