A new poll from Gallup and the Knight Foundation finds that younger Democrats are driving a huge decline in national news consumption in the U.S.
It marks the first time since the study began in early 2018 that Democrats report having less interest in national news than Republicans and independents.
While respondents across the political spectrum all reported a decline in interest in national news over the past year, Democrats’ interest has declined the most, with just 34% saying they paid a great deal of attention to national news in 2021, compared to 69% in November 2020.
The decline among Democrats ages 18-34 is staggering. Roughly a quarter (24%) said they paid a great deal of attention to national news in 2021, compared to 70% in November 2020. Those ages 35-54 also tuned out significantly.
Independents that lean Democrat are also paying less attention to national news than Independents that lean Republican, the survey found.
Partisans generally tend to tune in more to national news when the opposing party is in office, according to Gallup.
But in this case, anxiety about the state of affairs during the Trump era, and specifically 2020, may have driven Democrats to consume an outsized amount of national news.
But, as you can see, it’s not just Democrats:
Similarly, news fatigue following the pandemic and a chaotic election year is forcing Republicans to tune out more than expected.
Instead of consuming more news during the Biden Administration, the data shows a marginal decline in interest in national news from Republicans. Many right-wing outlets have seen traffic declines during Biden Administration, likely due to overall news fatigue, as Axios has previously reported.
Overall, the study found that fewer Americans are paying attention to national news “than at any time since early 2018.” Last month, Axios reported that news engagement fell off a cliff in 2021, citing significant declines in viewership across digital, television and social media. National news attention peaked in March 2020, at the onset of the pandemic, and again in November 2020, during the presidential election.
What about the news junkies like us? Well, we’re hanging in there:
While interest in national news has declined significantly, the percentage of Americans who said they pay “a great deal” of attention to local or international news, has remained consistent year-over-year.
I can understand why normal people would tune out. The news is just exhausting and after five years of the Trump Show, people are tired. There doesn’t seem to be any end to … any of this. The pandemic is still with us, the economy is a mixed bag, the right is even crazier than they were before and now we have foreign policy crises popping up all over the place.
I hate to say it, but that’s always how it is after the Republicans trash the place and Democrats have to clean up the mess. It’s been the pattern now for 30 years.
Hopefully, this will not translate into Democrats failing to come out to vote. Even if they’re sick to death of all of this, there is no other option.