Finding Political News Online, the Young Pass It On

From today's New York Times:

"It is not news that young politically minded viewers are turning to alternative sources like YouTube, Facebook and late-night comedy shows like “The Daily Show.” But that is only the beginning of how they process information.

According to interviews and recent surveys, younger voters tend to be not just consumers of news and current events but conduits as well — sending out e-mailed links and videos to friends and their social networks. And in turn, they rely on friends and online connections for news to come to them. In essence, they are replacing the professional filter — reading The Washington Post, clicking on CNN.com — with a social one."

Read the full article.

"If It Catches My Eye": Teens and Online News

Teenagers aren’t much into following serious news online, but news organizations can – and should – cultivate their interest, according to a new report from the Media Management Center at Northwestern University.

The report, "If It Catches My Eye: An Exploration of Online News Experiences of Teenagers," is based on a study of 65 Chicago-area teens conducted last year. Among its findings:

• *Teens are not interested enough to go out of their way for "serious" news. So whatever news pops up in front of them when they turn on their computers – usually the large Internet portals and news aggregators – is what they see.
• *At the same time, teens are "interestable." They will look at many different kinds of news online if it captures their attention – with subjects that interest them, video, pictures, the right topics, humorous and weird news and new things.
• *News organizations should listen to teens and actively develop new products, campaigns and initiatives aimed at attracting teens to the news, “catching the eye" and then deepening their interest by focusing on subjects teens are most interested in, providing the features and functionalities they like, and building on their interest in humor.
• *News content should be placed on sites where teens spend their time.
• *Programs should be developed to decrease teens' angst about the news.

See the full report online for more.

"Video Snacking": Prime Time on the Web

"In cubicles across the country, lunchtime has become the new prime time," reports the New York Times, and content producers and advertisers are taking notice.

Office workers frequently spend at least part of their lunch hour watching short videos -- "video snacking" -- and while this midday spike is not new, according to the Times, the response of media companies is new.

The article describes how media organizations, including CNN, NBC, local television stations and newspapers, and others, are creating programming specifically targeted at the lunchtime Web crowd. Advertisers and marketers are paying attention too, with some reporting that "consumers are up to 30 percent more likely to make a purchase after viewing an advertisement at lunchtime than at other times of the day."

Are You Paying Attention?

Who has a greater attention span, people reading news online or those reading it in print?

Some surprising results from a new study by the Poynter Institute.