1. SPOTLIGHT ON UK NEWSPAPER BRANDS
Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism
Digital News Report 2014
In partnership with
2. Special analysis of UK newspaper brand data from
Digital News Report 2014
The newspaper brand audience Slide 4
Newspaper brands and the move to multiplatform Slide 12
Interest in news Slide 22
Frequency of accessing news Slide 28
How are people finding and using online news? Slide 31
Importance of trust and brands in the digital environment Slide 35
Social media and sharing news Slide 40
Paying for news Slide 46
Sample & Method Slide 52
5. Newspaper brands reach nearly three-quarters
of the UK online audience
Q5 Which, if any, of the following have you used to access news in the last week? All UK daily
and Sunday titles, print & online, plus London Evening Standard , Metro. Excl. national newspaper
in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. Base: 2082 UK internet users
29.5million readers
=72%
accessed a newspaper
in any format during
the last week
6. Tablet newspaper readers
read newspapers on
their tablet last week
Base: Total sample 2082 internet users who have accessed the news
4.5m
8. Youngest readers favour digital newsbrands
63% 63%
67%
72%
79%
85%
43%
47%
54%
63%
72%
79%
49%
37% 38%
34%
28% 30%
18-24 25 to 34 35 to 44 45 to 54 55-64 65+
Read any newspaper last week Print newspaper Digital newspaper
Q5 Which, if any, of the following have you used to access news in the last week? All UK daily
and Sunday titles, print & online, plus London Evening Standard , Metro. Excl. national newspaper
in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. Base: 2082 UK internet users
9. Most popular commercial news source
41%
39%
30%
26%
16%
16%
13%
9%
6%
6%
56%
46%
35%
23%
10%
11%
10%
10%
1%
4%
Digital newspaper
Print newspaper
Facebook
Twitter
ITV broadcast
Sky TV news
YouTube
Sky online
ITV online
Commercial radio
18-20
21-24
Q5 /Q12B Which, if any, of the following have you used for news in the last week?
Base: 124 aged 18-20, 143 aged 21-24
10. More 18-24s read a newspaper brand than watch
traditional TV news
63% 62%
49%
13% 13%
6%
2%
National
newspaper brand
TV news BBC News ITV News Sky News C4 News C5 News
Q5 Which, if any, of the following have you used to access news in the last week?
Base: 267 UK internet users aged 18-24
11. Readers of both print and digital in all age groups
29%
21%
24% 24%
21%
24%
18-24 25 to 34 35 to 44 45 to 54 55-64 65+
Q5 Which, if any, of the following have you used to access news in the last week? All UK daily
and Sunday titles, print & online, plus London Evening Standard , Metro. Excl. national newspaper
in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. Base: 2082 UK internet users
13. Print
84%
Which platforms do newspaper
readers use?
Base: 1494 newspaper readers
Computer
36%
Tablet
15%
Smartphone
16%
% of all newspaper readers using each format last week
14. Which devices do digital newspaper
readers use?
% of all digital newspaper readers using each device last week
Computer
71%
Smartphone
33%
Tablet
30%
Base: 746 digital newspaper readers (Q5), users of each device who accessed digital newspaper last week (Q19): computer 554,
smartphone 245, tablet 225
15. Digital and multiplatform newspaper readers more likely to
use a computer for news
82% 86% 84% 85%
56% 58%
76% 77%
UK average Print newspapers Digital newspapers Print + digital
newspapers
Use computer for any purpose Use for news
Q8a. Which, if any, of the following devices do you ever use for any purpose? Q8b. Which, if any, of the following
devices have you used to access news in the last week? Base: 2082 UK internet users, 1253 print, 746 digital, 505
print + digital newspaper readers
16. Tablet ownership and use for news is higher among digital
newspaper readers
42% 43%
49% 49%
23% 25%
36% 36%
UK average Print newspapers Digital newspapers Print + digital
newspapers
Use tablet for any purpose Use for news
Q8a. Which, if any, of the following devices do you ever use for any purpose? Q8b. Which, if any, of the following
devices have you used to access news in the last week? Base: 2082 UK internet users, 1253 print, 746 digital, 505
print + digital newspaper readers
17. Base:481 who access news via their tablet
Tablet readers are highly engaged with
newspapers overall
read a newspaper on tablet46%
read a print newspaper65%
read a digital newspaper54%
total newspaper readership81%
People who read news on their tablet...
AND
18. Increase in app usage for digital newspaper readers
31%
38%
47%
50%
18%
10%
2013 2014
Mainly use news apps
Mainly use web browser
Use news apps and
mobile websites about the
same
OPT9b. Thinking specifically about when you look for news on a TABLET, which of the following statements most applies to you?
Base: 257 digital newspaper readers using tablet
19. Digital newspaper readers more likely to use a smartphone
for news
62%
58%
68% 66%
33% 31%
45% 45%
UK average Print newspapers Digital newspapers Print + digital
newspapers
Use smartphone for any purpose Use for news
Q8a. Which, if any, of the following devices do you ever use for any purpose? Q8b. Which, if any, of the following
devices have you used to access news in the last week? Base: 2082 UK internet users, 1253 print, 746 digital, 505
print + digital newspaper readers
20. Base: 635 who access news via their smartphone
Smartphone readers are highly engaged with
newspapers overall
read a newspaper on phone35%
read a print newspaper57%
read a digital newspaper48%
total newspaper readership73%
People who read news on their smartphone...
AND
21. Use of smartphones for news
48% 45%
38%
40%
11% 11%
UK internet users Digital newspaper readers
Mainly use news apps
Mainly use web browser
Use news apps and
mobile websites about the
same
OPT9a. Thinking specifically about when you look for news on a MOBILE, which of the following statements most applies to you?
Base: 650 mobile users, 335 digital newspaper readers using mobile
23. More interested
News Lovers Daily Briefers Casual users
UK internet users Print + digital newspapers
19%
29%
52%
29%
16%
55%
Base: 2082 internet users, 505 print + digital newspaper readers
24. News lovers read newspapers
8.1
million readers
=
84%
of News Lovers are
newspaper readers
25. Multiplatform readers are more interested in news
64%
72%
75%
79%
UK internet users
Print newspapers
Digital newspapers
Print + digital newspapers
% Very/extremely interested in news
Q1c. How interested, if at all, would you say you are in news?
Base: 2082 internet users, 1253 print, 746 digital, 505 print + digital newspaper readers
26. Multiplatform readers are more interested in news
42%
45%
46%
47%
23%
27%
29%
32%
UK internet users
Print newspapers
Digital newspapers
Print + digital newspapers
Very interested Extremely interested
Q1c. How interested, if at all, would you say you are in news?
Base: 2082 internet users, 1253 print, 746 digital, 505 print + digital newspaper readers
27. Top interest areas
75%
51%
48%
43%
41%
40%
30%
29%
24%
23%
19%
13%
12%
News about the UK
International news
Local news about my town or city
News about the economy
News about UK politics
News about my region
Sports news
Health and education news
Science and technology news
Business and financial news
Entertainment and celebrity news
Fun/weird news
Arts and culture news
Newspaper readers - any platform
Q2. Which of the following types of news is most important to you? (choose up to five)
Base: 1494 newspaper readers
29. More frequent access
57%
62%
66%
70%
28%
24%
24%
21%
Several times a day Once a day
Q1b Typically, how often do you access news?
Base: 2082 internet users (excl those who had not accessed news in previous month), 1253 print, 746 digital, 505 print + digital
newspaper readers
UK internet users
30. 10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
First thing in
the morning
Later in the
morning
Lunchtime Afternoon Early evening Late evening Last thing at
night
UK internet users Print newspaper readers
Digital newspaper readers Print + digital newspaper readers
OPT4b. When do you typically access the news? Base: 2082 UK internet users, 1253 print, 746 digital, 505 pint +
digital newspaper readers
Newspaper readers access news more frequently
32. Digital newspaper readers are much more likely to find
news by going directly to a brand site
45%
29%
17%
9%
4% 3%
62%
41%
25%
14%
5% 4%
Directly via brand Search engine Social media Email News aggregator Mobile phone alert
UK internet users Digital newspaper readers
Q10. Thinking about you got news online (via computer, mobile or any device) in the LAST WEEK, which were the ways in
which you came across news stories? Base: 2082 UK internet users, 746 digital newspaper readers
33. Digital newspaper readers more
engaged with fast and slow news
Followed a live
news page
within a website
Used an app Looked at a list of
news headlines
Read longer news
stories or articles
Looked at a sequence
or gallery of pictures
about news
Read a news
blog
Viewed a news
graphic/infographic
Watched news
video
Listened to
news audio
More likely to have……
34. Digital newspaper readers more engaged with fast and
slow news
59%
43%
16%
14%
13%
8%
7%
7%
5%
4%
74%
61%
23%
20%
20%
12%
12%
13%
9%
7%
Looked at a list of news headlines
Read longer news stories or articles
Watched news video
Look at a sequence or gallery of pictures about news
Used an “app” on my smartphone to access news
Followed a live news page within a website
Used an “app” on my tablet to access news
Read a news blog
Listened to news audio
Viewed a news graphic (infographic)
UK internet users Digital newspaper readers
Q11. Thinking of the way you looked at news online in the last week, which of the following ways of
consuming news did you use? Base: 2082 accessing news last week, 746 digital newspaper readers
36. Newspaper brands are highly trusted in the digital
environment, especially among readers of the brand
79%
78%
60%
21%
11%
9%
8%
UK broadcaster sites
Newspaper website you use most regularly*
UK newspaper sites
News providers outside UK
News related blogs
Twitter
Facebook
2013 study. Q UK9A. Thinking about the types of sites, mobile sites or apps where you get news online, how
trustworthy do you find the news content of the following? % answering very/quite trustworthy.
Base: 2078 UK internet users/752 online newspaper readers
2013 Report
37. Brand and journalists create trust
63%
44%
74%
59%
Brand Journalists
UK internet users Multi-platform newspaper readers
% saying important contributor to trust in news source
Q5e_1. To what extent are the following important to you in terms of whether you trust a source of news. Base:2082
internet users, 505 print + digital newspaper readers
38. Digital newspaper readers are most likely to go
directly to a newsbrand site on any device
48%
26%
9% 11%
52%
31%
7% 3%
54%
33%
5% 4%
Mainly access news
directly via a branded
link (logo) of a news
provider
Mainly access news
via a search engine
Mainly access news by
a social network
Mainly access news
via an app or mobile
website that
aggregates different
news sources
Smartphone Tablet Computer
OPT9c/d/e. Thinking specifically about when you look for news on a mobile/tablet/computer, which of the
following statements most applies to you? Base: digital newspaper readers, 335 using mobile, 257 using
tablet, 586 using computer
39. Known and trusted newsbrands provide strong
motivation for digital readers
74%
21%
81%
18%
I would tend to click a link to sites I
know and trust
I don’t really notice which sites I am
using, I would just click the link that
had the most relevant headline
UK internet users Digital newspaper readers
Q10gi. You said that you enter a keyword into a search engine to get the latest/information/depth and
analysis about a fast moving story (e.g. earthquake or major riot), which results do you tend to click on?
Base: 289 using search engine keyword , 127 digital newspaper readers using search/keyword
41. Digital newspaper readers are more likely to access
social media – and more likely to use for news
22%
29%
6%
9%
12%
20%
Use for news Use at all
UK internet users
Digital newspaper readers
UK internet users
Digital newspaper readers
UK internet users
Digital newspaper readers
61%
68%
40%
50%
24%
34%
Facebook
YouTube
Twitter
Q12A. Which, if any, of the following have you used for any purpose in the last week/Q12B. Which, if any, of the following have you used for reading,
watching, sharing or discussing news in the last week? Base: 2082 UK internet users, 746 digital newspaper readers
42. Multiplatform newspaper
readers are 75% more likely
to share a news story
Q13. During an average week in which, if any, of the following ways do you share or participate in news coverage?
Base: 2082 UK internet users, 505 print + digital newspaper readers
More active on social networks
Multiplatform newspaper
readers are 75% more likely
to comment on a news story
43. 56% of all people sharing
news via social media are
digital newspaper readers
More active on social networks
55% of all people who
comment on a news story
are digital newspaper
readers
Q13. During an average week in which, if any, of the following ways do you share or participate in news coverage?
Base: 2082 UK internet users, 746 digital newspaper readers
44. OPT13B How frequently do you do each of the following? Base: 2082 UK internet users, 505 print + digital newspaper
readers
More active, more frequently
Digital and multi-platform
newspaper readers share,
comment and discuss with
friends more often than
average internet user
45. Multiplatform newspaper readers much more likely to
interact with news stories
39%
16%
13%
12%
11%
8%
47%
26%
19%
21%
18%
14%
Talk with friends and colleagues about a news
story (face to face)
Talk with friends and colleagues about a news
story (e.g. by email, social media, instant…
Comment on a news story in a Social Network
(like Facebook or Twitter)
Share a news story via Social Network (like
Facebook, Twitter, Reddit)
Vote in an online poll via a news site or social
network
Rate (or Like) a news story
UK internet users Print + digital newspaper readers
Q13. During an average week in which, if any, of the following ways do you share or participate in
news coverage? Base: 2082 UK internet users , 505 print + digital newspaper readers
47. Nearly half of digital newspaper readers buy a printed
paper – and they are more likely to pay for digital
49%
7% 7%
70%
9% 7%
47%
17%
9%
60%
18%
10%
Bought a printed
newspaper
Paid for digital news Likely to consider
UK internet users Print newspapers
Digital newspapers Print + digital newspapers
Q6. Have you bought (paid for) a printed newspaper in the last week? Q7.Have you paid for online news content?
Base: 2082 UK internet users, 1252 print, 746 digital, 505 both print and digital newspaper readers.
Q7aii How likely or unlikely would you be to pay for online news in the future. Base: 1925 UK internet users who are not currently
paying for digital news/1149 print/633 digital/426 print + digital
48. Brand and journalists create loyalty
19%
12%
18%
38%
45%
32%
57%
10%
18%
18%
33%
37%
43%
45%
Quality of specific area
No other way to access valued
content
Special offers/subscribers’ club
Quality of specific journalists
Brand I prefer
Access when/where I want
Broad range of news coverage
Start subscription
Stay subscribed
OPT7b&c. What were the three most important factors in taking an online news subscription in the first place? What are the most important
factors in keeping you subscribed to an online news product (chose up to three) Base: 78 digital newspaper readers with subscription
49. Nearly half of online newspaper readers buy a printed
paper – and they are more likely to pay for digital
49%
7% 7%
70%
9% 7%
47%
17%
9%
60%
18%
10%
Bought a printed
newspaper
Paid for digital news Likely to consider
UK internet users Print newspapers
Digital newspapers Print + digital newspapers
Q6. Have you bought (paid for) a printed newspaper in the last week? Q7.Have you paid for online news content?
Base: 2082 UK internet users, 1252 print, 746 digital, 505 both print and digital newspaper readers.
Q7bHow likely or unlikely would you be to pay for online news in the future. Base: 1925/1149 print/633 digital/426 print + digital
50. Most payments are ongoing
36%
67%
Q7ai. You said you have accessed paid for ONLINE news content in the last year. Which, if any, of the following types of payment
have you used to pay for ONLINE news content in the last year? Base: 111 digital newspaper readers
One-off payment
Ongoing subscription
51. To download the full Digital News Report and charts from
the Reuters Institute (excl this special newspaper analysis)
go to www.digitalnewsreport.org
52. Sample & Method
All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov
Plc. Total sample size was 2082 adults. Fieldwork was
undertaken January – early February 2014. The survey
was carried out online. The figures have been weighted
and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+).
53. Note on the sample definition:
The full sample is referred to as “UK internet
users” as it is representative of the population
who have access to the internet – however a
small proportion were screened out if they
had not accessed news in the past month
Editor's Notes
This presentation is based on analysis of the UK data on newspaper readers and these charts do not appear in the main Digital News report.
Despite all this digital disruption, UK newspaper brands remain a powerful force in news – and the digital revolution has helped to grow their audience and their influence.
This is an online survey, so excludes people who don’t have internet access (that means quite a lot of older print readers, for instance).
Yet the reach of newspaper brands among this online audience is still huge – nearly three quarters accessed a newspaper in the previous week, which equates to 29.5 million people.
(For comparison, NRS PADD April 2013-March 2014 gives 36 million weekly reach for print and online alone, excluding tablet and smartphone.)
Note on the sample definition:
The full sample is referred to as “UK internet users” as it is representative of the population who have access to the internet – however a small proportion were screened out if they had not accessed news in the past month
Whilst only 23% of the population are currently using a tablet to access news, there is clear evidence that tablet ownership is strengthening rather than weakening the role of newspaper brands. The survey reports that 11% are reading newspaper brands via their tablet – that’s a weekly reach of 4.5 million.
Around a third of people who read news on their smartphone said they read a newspaper brand. That’s just under 5 million readers. Of course, it’s pretty difficult for people to remember every website they visit via their phone, as they tend to snack more. So this estimate is considerably lower than tracking data – comScore’s monthly data supplied directly by the phone manufacturers shows that newspapers reach 12.65 million mobile users – that’s more than 60% of the people who access the internet by phone. But it’s a clear demonstration that publishers have created content that appeals across a range of devices.
We often hear that young people don’t read newspapers any more.
But in fact, nearly two thirds of 18-34 year olds had read a newspaper in some form during the previous week. And readership increases through older lifestages.
Where we do see a difference by age, it is in the platforms they choose.
Older people are most likely to read print.
But 18-24’s are the most likely to read digital newspaper brands. And it may surprise you to know that more of them read a newspaper in any format than watched TV news – while only 5% listened to commercial radio news broadcasts.
Across all age groups readership of newspaper brands is:
61% read print
35% read digital
72% read either print or digital = total reach in a week
While the BBC is the most popular broadcast and online news provider, newspapers are the most popular commercial source for news among the youngest age groups – as well as older people.
Newspaper reading kicks in later in life for many people - in the youngest group, we see an uplift in total newspaper readership from 57% of 18-20 year olds to 68% of 21-24 age group. This ties in with our own Truly Madly Deeply research, which identified a key need to “become a grown up” when young people enter the world of work.
Not only are young people the most likely to read digital newspapers, but they are also the most likely to read across platforms – 29% of the 18-24 age group read both print and online newspaper brands. So there’s a significant young audience that have newspapers at the very heart of their news agenda.
This presentation – and indeed the whole report, is about digital news. However, it’s important to remember that print is still by far the biggest platform for newspapers.
Even for this sample of online adults, print still dominates – 84% of readers are still reading print.
Nearly half (48%) of the 29.5 million who read a newspaper in any format the previous week ONLY read a print version.
The main change has been in the way that people are accessing digital newspaper brands
– there’s been a 5% point drop in the use of desktop computers and laptops, while smartphone and particularly tablet platforms are increasing importance
– smartphone use is up 2%,
– tablet increased from 9% to 15%.
Print + smartphone = 11% of readers
Print + computer = 25% of readers
Print + tablet = 10% of readers
Computers are still the most popular way to access newspapers online. Mobile is second, with a third of digital newspaper readers accessing via smartphone in the past week. And 30% are using tablets, up from just a quarter in 2013. The evidence in this report is that use of smartphones and tablets is likely to increase, which means that the overall readership of newspaper brands on digital platforms is also likely to get bigger.
Tablet users who access news engage strongly with newspapers across all platforms. They are more likely than other device users to read newspapers both in print and online, as well as accessing via their tablet.
(For the total internet sample, readership of newspaper brands is:
35% read digital
61% read print
72% read either print or digital = total reach in a week)
Newspaper readers are very similar to all tablet users in their use of apps vs browser. However, there has been a big increase in app usage (possibly due to increased availability of android apps)
And while smartphone readers are slightly less likely to read a print newspaper during the week (57% versus average 61%), they are much more likely to be digital readers than the average internet user – so total newspaper brands reach is just above the average of 72%.
Digital newspaper readers are slightly more likely to use a browser to access news on their mobile than other mobile news readers.
The Reuters Institute Digital News Report divides people up into 3 kinds of news reader. The majority are ‘daily briefers’ with a moderate interest in the news who access several times a day. News Lovers have a very high interest in news and access more frequently.
-They make up 19% of the total UK online sample.
-When we look at people who read both print and digital newspapers, we can see a considerably higher proportion are News Lovers (29%)
Looking at it another way, we can see that 84% of news lovers - that’s 8.1 million people -are people who read newspapers.
We’ve seen that newspaper readers are younger than many people think, and that the advent of new devices and platforms has increased overall reach. The Reuters Institute study also shows us that newspaper readers access news more frequently. And frequency increases as people read different newspaper formats:
On average the UK study showed that 57% of people accessed news several times a day, with 28% just getting a daily fix.
Print newspaper readers are more likely to access news several times a day
This jumps to 66% of digital newspaper readers
And among multi-platform newspaper readers – that’s people reading both print and digital, we see that 7 out of 10 are in the “several times a day” group.
Newspaper readers are more likely than the average internet user to access news across all time points in the day. For print newspaper readers (the red line) we see the typical early morning and early evening peaks accessing news that we see for TV – plus a smaller peak at lunchtime. Digital readers follow a similar pattern – except that they access more from lunchtime onwards and reading digital newspapers doesn’t fall off so steeply in the evenings.
Internet users in the UK are much more likely to discover news by going directly to news brand websites than US consumers (33% go directly to brands and 40% use search) Digital newspaper readers in the UK are even more likely to go direct to a familiar newsbrand to find news – although they will also use search and social media to discover news – which will often lead them back to a known and trusted brand – see charts 38 and 39
This love of news means they are more engaged. Digital newspaper readers are reading quick updates more than the general digital population, but they’re also much more attracted to longer form journalism, and anything that enhances the news experience, including video, audio, blogs, apps on phones and tablets and live news pages.
Read list of headlines – 75% of digital newspaper readers vs 59% for total online sample; longer news stories – 61% vs 43%.
Their love of news means digital newspaper readers are more engaged than the general online population. Digital newspaper readers are reading quick updates more, but they’re also much more attracted to longer form journalism, and anything that enhances the news experience, including video, audio, blogs, apps on phones and tablets and live news pages.
Read list of headlines – 75% vs 59% for total online sample; longer news stories – 61% vs 43%.
We hear a lot about how the national press is not trusted. The diverse nature of newspapers in this country means that it is easy to take a swipe at titles with a different political point of view, or a different take on news content. However, newspapers are in fact one of the most trusted and influential environments – and this translates into the digital arena. Whilst on average 60% said they trusted the news content of UK newspaper websites, only 7% actively distrust newspaper sites. And when it comes to the newspaper you most regularly use, 78% of online newspaper readers find their chosen title trustworthy. This is vital, since trust is more important for online newspaper readers – 86% tend to access news from sites they know and trust – compared with 77% of the overall sample. And they are much more likely to go to a branded news site, mobile site or app too find news in the first instance than use a search engine or social media.
Readers of online quality brands are likely to trust their regular newspaper most (83%), followed by readers of an online popular title (78%).
In the UK, the brand and journalists are fundamental to the creation of trust in a news source - even more so among newspaper readers than among the general digital population. This ability to engender trust, loyalty and engagement is what makes UK newspaper brands strong destination brands in the multi-platform world of news.
The influence and interaction of digital and multiplatform newspaper readers with social media is striking. Compared with the average online adult, they are more likely to share on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube; or take part in a range of interactions from talking with friends online, posting a comment, emailing stories, rating and voting in online polls.
You could refer to these as the content generation.
They also do all this more frequently than the average internet user.
The influence and interaction of digital and multiplatform newspaper readers with social media is striking. Compared with the average online adult, they are more likely to share on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube; or take part in a range of interactions from talking with friends online, posting a comment, emailing stories, rating and voting in online polls.
You could refer to these as the content generation.
Many digital newspaper readers are paying for news – they are buying print!
And they are more likely to be paying for digital – mainly due to a rise in subscriptions. And I doubt that many people said they would pay for Sky when it was first launched. It’s a question of getting the content right – or of finding ways to provide it without charge, by building valuable audiences that advertisers want to reach.
(Digital newspaper subscription is up from 37% of people paying in 2013 to 53% in 2014 – including digital as part of print + package, this rises to 67% versus 54% in2013. )
Brands and journalists, and the content they create, are key reasons why people do subscribe - and even stronger reasons why they stay.