Where young adults choose to get their news not only shapes their worldview, but could also influence how the media industry continues to evolve.
A new survey of 1,500 undergraduates found that digital-first news sites have not beat out legacy news organizations in the battle for young people’s attention. The New York Times and NPR rank as college students’ favorite news sources, followed by Fox News and CNN.
In an increasingly polarized political climate, however, students’ go-to news sources vary based on their political leanings. A majority of Republican students say Fox News (53%) is their top source, while Democratic students rely much more on NPR (22%), The New York Times (18%), and CNN (18%).
College Students’ Top News Sources
If you had to choose a single news source for information about politics and current events, which would you choose?
Although news sources specifically created for the internet are not students’ favorites, the majority of students get their news online in some form. More than one-third (35%) of students prefer getting news directly from a news website or app, while more than one-quarter (27%) prefer getting news from social media. Fifteen percent say they prefer getting their news by listening to the radio or a podcast.
College students are far less likely than other adults to watch the news on television or read a print newspaper. While 15% of students prefer to watch the news on TV and 6% prefer to read a newspaper, a 2018 Pew Research Center survey found that nearly half (49%) of Americans overall get their news from watching TV and 16% from reading a newspaper.
More College Students Get News From Social Media than Print Newspapers and TV Combined
Which of the following would you say you prefer for getting news?
At the same time, there’s a gender gap when it comes to college students’ use of print newspapers and broadcast news. Male students are twice as likely as female students to prefer reading a print newspaper (8% vs. 4%), and female students are almost twice as likely as male students to watch broadcast news (19% vs. 11%).
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Methodology: This survey was designed and conducted by College Pulse. Interviews were conducted among a sample of 1,500 full-time and part-time students attending four-year colleges or universities in the U.S. who are part of College Pulse’s American College Student Panel.
