Two-Thirds of Small Town Residents Read Community Newspapers

Newspapers

February 4, 2014 -- Approximately two-thirds (67%) of residents in small U.S. communities read their local newspaper at least once a week, according to the 2013 Community Newspaper Readership Study conducted by The Reynolds Journalism Institute (RJI) on behalf of National Newspaper Association (NNA).
 

Since 2005, NNA has been commissioning the survey to examine public attitudes, perceptions, and readership of local newspapers in small communities. The circulation size local newspapers for the purpose of this survey were 15,000 or less.

Findings: 

COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS REMAIN POPULAR
 

• The survey shows that 67% of the people interviewed read a community newspaper at least once a week. The readership was 71% in the 2012 survey, 74% in 2011 and 73% in 2010. Analysis shows that older adults read the newspapers significantly more than younger adults. 

• Local newspapers continue to be a primary source of information about communities in small towns and cities. Four out of ten of all respondents  (42%) selected “newspaper” and “newspaper’s website” as their primary source of information.

• Community newspapers continued to be highly valuable to small communities:

  • 94% of readers agreed that the newspapers were informative

  • 80% said that they and their families looked forward to reading the newspapers

  • 78% relied on the newspapers for local news and information

  • 72% said the newspapers entertained them. 
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• The pass along rate of the 2013 survey, measured by the average score of the responses to the question item: About how many of your friends, colleagues, co-workers or those in your household do you share the newspaper with? was 2.48 people, compared to 2.18 in 2012 and 2.33 in 2011.

• More than half (54%) of readers have either clipped a story from the print newspaper or provided a link from the newspaper’s website to save or send to a friend or family member in the past 12 months, similar to 56% in 2012.

MAJORITY SAY LOCAL NEWSPAPER ADS HELP THEM MAKE BETTER PURCHASING DECISIONS

• Seven out of ten (71%) readers agree that newspaper advertising inserts help them make better purchasing decisions, compared to 76% in 2012.

• Compared to online ads, readers preferred ads in the newspapers, as 82% either “strongly” or “somewhat” agreed that they would rather look through newspaper ads than view them on the Internet.

MOBILE PHONE OWNERSHIP HIGH AMONG AMERICANS IN SMALL TOWNS AND CITIES
 

• The 2013 survey shows that 92% of residents have a cell phone, compared to 84% in 2012. Of those who own a cell phone, 45% have a smartphone, compared to 24% in 2012.
   

• Nearly four in ten (39%) smartphone owners say they use their devices to access local news, significantly more than 31% in 2012 and 26% in 2011. 

• Similarly, 53% accessed shopping information with their mobile devices within the past thirty days, higher than the 49% in 2012 and 38% in 2011.

MAJORITY OF SMALL TOWN AND CITY AMERICANS GO ONLINE
 

• More than 7 out of 10 residents (73%) in small towns and cities have Internet access at home, the same as in 2012 and slightly higher than 70% in 2011. and 71% in 2010.

• 39% of those that have Internet access say they have visited their local newspaper's website during the past month, significantly higher than 30% in 2012 and 28% in 2011.

• Nearly half (49%) of online users chose their local newspaper’s website as their favored source of information for local news, 25% selected their local television’s website, and 21% pick independent sites such as Yahoo, MSN, and etc. Overall, the results were similar to previous NNA findings.

• Of those who visited the newspapers’ websites during the past month, 14% paid to view the online content, significantly higher than six percent (6%) in 2012, suggesting that more community newspapers have implemented paid content models with the past year.

About: The Center for Advanced Social Research of The Reynolds Journalism Institute completed 508 telephone interviews (using both landline and cell phone numbers) with adults aged 18 or older randomly selected in areas where the circulation size of the local newspaper was 15,000 or less in September and November 2013. The response rate of the survey was 41.2%. For results based on the entire sample (n = 508), the margin of error is plus or minus five percentage points (5%). In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting the surveys may introduce some error or bias into the findings.

The NNA, founded in 1885, represents 2,200 members across the U.S. Its mission is to protect, promote and enhance America’s community newspapers. Most of its members are weekly or small daily newspapers in smaller or niche communities.

Source: National Newspaper Association, Two-thirds of residents in small towns and cities read community newspapers, Feb. 3, 2014.