Portrait of the Online Local News Audience

With resources for local journalism outlets on the decline and the use of digital tools on the rise, there has been greater consideration of the audience among journalists, editors, and foundations. Recent research on news audiences has focused on the industry-driven concern of the impact of technology on news audience practices and routines as well as about the civic journalism concern about the ability of local news to meet critical information needs and to offer space for “public connection.” However, a limited amount of current scholarship addresses a qualitative understanding of the social contexts for local US news audiences’ habits and beliefs. Drawing upon data from six focus groups across three communities, this paper highlights three collective narratives on local news audience practices generated by participants, which we have labeled: (1) self-reliant news consumer, (2) lack of citizen journalism, and (3) continued importance of interpersonal networks. These collective narratives may provide insights into the nature of local news audiences and point to avenues for future research.

Duke Scholars

Author Philip Michael Napoli Sanford School of Public Policy