More People are Now Using Tablet or Smartphone to Get News
Years ago, people rely on traditional media, specifically television and newspaper, to get news. When the Internet came around, news-hungry individuals became even more well-informed in just a click of the mouse. But now, more and more people are relying on their tablet or smartphone to know what’s going in around the globe. In fact, a new survey has just recently demonstrated how the emergence of mobile devices, such as tablet and smartphone, have changed the way people get news these days.
According to a UTSanDiego.com report, of the 9,500 tablet and smartphone owners surveyed by the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism and The Economist magazine, 43% are spending more time with the news than they did previously. Furthermore, 31% say they are getting news from additional sources that they didn’t use before they had their smartphone or tablet. No wonder, news ranked the second — the first is email — most widely performed activities by mobile device users, preceding games, use of social networking sites, and reading books.
Tom Rosenstiel, director of the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism, said that while people still continue watching TV or reading the newspaper, they are also integrating their mobile devices ” into their daily or weekly routine.”
“It’s an opportunity, and it’s particularly an opportunity for traditional brands,” Rosenstiel adds, pertaining on the survey results’ implications for publishers. “On mobile devices, people are not going to Google search and typing in a topic. They’re going to a handful of familiar news outlets, and they’re going back to them repeatedly.”
The survey also showed an increase in the number of adult Americans who now own a mobile device. It says smartphone ownership in the United States is up by 44%, compared to the previous year’s 35%.