FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEAPRIL 6, 2009
NEW NAA FOUNDATION RESEARCH SHEDS LIGHT
ON WHAT TEENS WANT FROM ONLINE NEWS SITES
Latest research conducted by the Media Management Center at Northwestern University
Arlington , Va. – New research sponsored by the Newspaper Association of America Foundation finds that teens have a strong desire to be knowledgeable about the news, but their tendencies to feel “time-starved” and overloaded with information options drive them more toward the “quick news fix” such as search engines or generic portals and less toward newspaper Web sites.
The study, which was conducted by the Media Management Center at Northwestern University , used 90-minute focus groups with 96 teens ages 13-18. Participants were asked to comment on various prototype news site home pages and individual story pages. The participants identified three approaches they typically look for in news Web sites:
A site that encourages interest in the news by focusing attention on a few important stories that are accompanied by photos.
A home page that provides a general sense of the day’s relevant news with simple but enticing pitches for individual stories.
Individual story pages that supplement stories with background and related information, illustration and multiple entry points – all broken into manageable sizes.
“In our focus groups, it was clear that teens were not looking for a ‘youth news site’ that focuses mostly on lifestyle and entertainment content,” said Jeanne Fox-Alston, vice president of the NAA Foundation. “What they really want are news sites that do news well – not dumb the news down or pretend that the writers of the site are experts in teen culture.”
The 12 focus groups were held in six U.S. cities: Denver ; Philadelphia ; Fort Lauderdale ; Fresno , Calif. ; Springfield , Ill. ; and Orangeburg , S.C. Responses from the teens were similar to those of adults who are light readers, according to the researchers. Therefore, the report recommends creating a new type of site – not just for teens, but for all people who lack experience with news and have a limited amount of time to get engaged in it. This approach not only would serve teens better, but also would attract a larger underserved adult audience.
The study -- “Teens Know What They Want From Online News: Do You?” – builds on previous studies of young people conducted in 2008 by the Media Management Center . It was released today during the annual meeting of the Newspaper Association of America.
About the NAA Foundation
The Newspaper Association of America Foundation strives to develop engaged and literate citizens in a diverse society. The Foundation invests in and supports programs designed to enhance student achievement through newspaper readership and appreciation of the First Amendment. The Foundation also endeavors to help media companies increase their readership and audience by offering programs that encourage the cultivation of a more diverse work force in the press. Information about the Foundation and its programs may be found at http://www.naafoundation.org/.
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3 comments:
I like this study, because it is true and I see it going on in school. The study was telling that the focus groups they had, actually were looking for worthy news to read, and news that was written well. A lot of the times, teens might not always want to read the majorly long news story, but what we will like is that the stories are clear, and show good facts and relevance to help tell the story. In my opinion, I think it is always good to be updated with the news, because it could be useful, or even affecting you. The study showed, that online news can be fun and interesting for a younger age group, and will help us be more up to date with things. In some classes in school, we might get into a different conversation that might relate to the topic or not, but what I like about talking about different things, is that we get informed with things we might not even know about, or learn new things from people.
I think this study was very interesting. Being on the newspaper staff getting to see what kids really think of news is interesting. I think we should do a study in our school for our paper. Asking students what they want to see more of and what they think of our paper now. What attracts them etc.
That's a great idea, Melissa. Anyone want to take on the job for the last issue (in June) so we can plan ahead to June? Let's see what we can do. Maybe a couple of people will take on the job.
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