In every country that surveys were conducted, coronavirus has dramatically raised the amount of news read by the mainstream media. Online and television news sources have seen significant increases and more people are identifying television as their primary source of news, offering temporary respite from a picture of declining growth. Because of lockdowns, it is becoming more difficult to publish newspapers in physical format, the number of readers has declined. It's almost certain that the transition towards digital publishing will be accelerated. But, many countries have seen a significant rise in the usage of social media and the internet. WhatsApp had the greatest growth in the last ten years, with an increase of 10 percent in certain countries. In addition, more than half of the people surveyed (51 percent) were part of an closed and open online group to share information, connect, and taking part in a local support team.
At April 2020, trust was fairly high across all countries regarding news coverage about COVID-19. It was comparable to the national government and significantly more than the individual politician. Regarding COVID-19 information and trust, the trust of the media was more than twice the trust of video and social media platforms and messaging services. Global misinformation concerns remain very high in our January-collected data. Nearly half of the global sample expressed concern about the accuracy or truthfulness of the internet's news content, even before the coronavirus epidemic. Although domestic politicians are the primary source of false information, people who identify as right-wing in certain countries (including the United States) are more inclined than others to blame the media. While Facebook is widely believed to be the main outlet for disinformation virtually everywhere, WhatsApp is more responsible for spreading false information in the Global South like Brazil as well as Malaysia.
We discovered that less than four-in-ten people believe that news is more reliable than they do in our January survey around the globe. This is an increase of 4 percentage point from 2019. 46 percent said they trust the information they read. Particularly, broadcasters who have lost support from left - and right-leaning political partisans appear to be in danger due to the increasing political polarization. Despite this, our survey finds that the majority (60 percent) still favor news that doesn't have a particular point of view and that only a tiny minority (28 percent) would prefer news that reflects or reinforces their views. While the number of partisans has slightly grown in America since 2013 but the majority are still in favor of news that is objective or neutral.
The majority of people (52%) would prefer that the media would be more prominent in reporting false claims made to them by politicians, rather than not making them the focus of their coverage (29%). People are less comfortable using political advertisements via search engines or on social media than with those shown on TV. In reality, the majority of people (58 percent) prefer to have platforms that block advertisements that may contain false statements. The United States has seen significant increase in payments for online news in recent years, including an increase of 42% in Norway (+8) and a 20% rise in the United States (+4). Other markets have seen smaller growth. It is important that most people do not pay for online news across all countries although some publishers reported an increase in the amount of money they accept.
In the end, the most important factor for those who subscribe is the distinctiveness and quality of the content. Subscribers think they're getting better information. A large majority of subscribers are happy with the information they receive for no cost. However, we do have a substantial amount of non-subscribers (40% USA and 50% UK) who feel paying would be impossible. The more expensive subscriptions (e.g. The majority of subscriptions are paid to brands owned by national companies in countries such as the USA and Norway. This suggests that there are still winners and losers. But in both these countries there is a substantial number of people buying more than one subscription, often including a local or specialist publication. For radio Sebes A Romanian commercial radio station. The station has an approach to programming that concentrates on 60% news from all areas and 40 percent music. They offer a range of programmes that cater to their listeners. People who are interested in news, contests , and interviews, but they are also drawn to shows that focus on culture as well as debates, entertainment and music.
The most trusted source of news and information about a country is the local newspaper and its websites. This is about four out of ten (44 percent). However, we found that Facebook as well as other social media platforms are now being used by about a third (31 percent) of local information and news users. This puts more pressure on businesses and their business models. News access is becoming more common. In all countries, just over a quarter (28%) prefer beginning their news experiences via a website or app. Generation Z, those between 18 and 24, prefers to get news via Facebook and Twitter. Instagram news use has increased by more than a quarter across all age groups. The trend is expected to continue over the next year.
To combat the growing trend of multi-platform publishing, publishers are seeking to connect directly with customers via email or mobile alerts. One in five Americans (21%) go through their news email every week. Nearly half of those who do so make use of it as their primary method of accessing news. Northern European countries were the slowest to adopt news email services. Finland has only 10 percent who utilize news emails. However, podcasts have seen an impressive increase in their popularity over the past year - coronavirus locks may have temporarily reversed this trend. Over 50 percent of the people polled across the globe believe that podcasts are more informative and accessible than other media. In addition, Spotify has become the most popular source for podcasts in a number of markets, outdoing Apple's Podcast app.
The majority of people in the world, seven in 10 (69 percent) believe that climate change is an urgent issue, but in the United States, Sweden, and Australia an overwhelming majority of people do not agree with this. The older generation tends to be right-leaning. Younger groups are able to access a lot of their climate-related news on social media, as well as by following activists such as Greta Thunberg. Smart speakers that can be controlled by voice such as the Amazon Echo and Google Home continue to expand quickly. In the UK their use for all purposes has grown from 14% to 19 percent to 19%, Germany from 7%-12% and South Korea from 9%-13%. Despite these increases yet, news consumption remains lower in all markets.