Our survey asks respondents to select their five most important types of news. Once again this produces some interesting country-based variations. International news is considered most important in Germany, Japan, and also in one of our new countries, Australia, where so many inhabitants have roots in Europe or Asia. Respondents in the United States and urban Brazil are least interested in this type of news.
Regional news is most important in Germany, Finland, and Spain reflecting the relative importance of devolved political power in those countries – and the media systems that have grown up around this. Local news matters more in a vast country like the United States where city newspapers and local TV stations remain a core part of the media diet.
Elsewhere, the Japanese are most interested in entertainment and celebrity news, with the Spanish, Danes, French, and Germans showing the least interest.
The Irish take a particular interest in the business news and the economy – as do the Japanese and Australians. Italians and Spanish are interested in arts and culture news while our sample from urban Brazil is far more interested in health and education than are the rest of our countries.
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Interest in different types of news – all countries
| UK | Germany | Spain | Italy | France | Denmark | Finland | Ireland | USA | Urban Brazil | Australia | Japan | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| News about the country | 72% | 67% | 63% | 56% | 65% | 64% | 74% | 59% | 57% | 61% | 62% | 55% |
| International news | 51% | 70% | 53% | 49% | 59% | 66% | 62% | 64% | 46% | 43% | 75% | 46% |
| Local news about my town or city | 44% | 41% | 34% | 44% | 33% | 38% | 44% | 42% | 52% | 40% | 41% | 22% |
| News about my region | 37% | 54% | 41% | 35% | 40% | 25% | 49% | 29% | 28% | 32% | 29% | 26% |
| Business and financial news | 20% | 12% | 15% | 15% | 14% | 26% | 11% | 27% | 19% | 25% | 28% | 25% |
| News about the economy | 37% | 29% | 40% | 30% | 32% | 34% | 35% | 42% | 41% | 31% | 35% | 45% |
| Entertainment and celebrity news | 16% | 13% | 7% | 16% | 9% | 9% | 17% | 21% | 13% | 15% | 20% | 29% |
| Fun/weird news | 14% | 12% | 16% | 19% | 12% | 18% | 13% | 18% | 17% | 18% | 15% | 18% |
| Health news | 27% | 22% | 32% | 33% | 27% | 25% | 28% | 30% | 28% | 43% | 26% | 31% |
| Education news | 12% | 12% | 25% | 14% | 14% | 12% | 7% | 13% | 15% | 32% | 11% | 11% |
| Arts and culture news | 11% | 8% | 21% | 26% | 15% | 15% | 12% | 13% | 10% | 19% | 11% | 18% |
| Sports news | 30% | 28% | 30% | 30% | 21% | 28% | 26% | 33% | 21% | 30% | 29% | 32% |
| News about the country’s politics | 41% | 50% | 46% | 46% | 46% | 46% | 32% | 32% | 47% | 36% | 29% | 47% |
| Science and technology news | 24% | 25% | 31% | 35% | 23% | 33% | 28% | 27% | 28% | 34% | 28% | 26% |
Base: Total sample in each country.
Election stimulates interest in UK politics
Our survey took place in the run-up to the UK election and in our data this year we can detect greater interest in politics – as well as the continuing fall out from the Scottish referendum in September 2014. Across the board the biggest rise in interest levels in the UK has been amongst the young and older groups (see table).
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Level of interest in politics – UK
| 18-24 | 25-34 | 35-44 | 45-54 | 55+ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 33% | 28% | 29% | 32% | 37% |
| 2015 | 48% | 30% | 31% | 36% | 46% |
Base: Total sample 2013-2015 UK = 2078/2082/2149, Scotland = 156/219/198. Note: Interested refers to those that indicated that they were either ‘extremely’ or ‘very’ interested
In Scotland, the stimulation of interest in politics has been remarkable. In 2013 people in Scotland showed similar interest to the UK average but the passions raised by the independence campaign and the closeness of the result have left Scots ahead on pretty much every indicator. A quarter (26%) regularly post political comments via social networks. More than a fifth (20%) follow a politician on social media, while the percentage of people contributing money to a political party has tripled in two years.
Impact of Scottish referendum on political participation
Base: Total sample 2013-2015 Scotland = 156/219/198.
Social media played a significant role in the referendum campaign and even today we find that supporters of the Scottish National Party (SNP) are more likely to use social media for commenting on politics (34%) when compared with Tories (16%) and Lib Dems (11%).
Changing sources of political news
Across the UK, our data also show the rise in importance of information that is pushed to individuals though new one-to-one digital channels such as social media and email.Broadcaster brands like the BBC, ITV, and Sky and newspaper brands (in print and online) remain the most important sources of news but their overall reach is on a downward curve. By contrast, those who say they get political news from social networks like Facebook and Twitter has risen from 15% to 25% in four years. More people are also getting information directly from political parties (7% to 14%).
Main sources of political news – UK
Base: All who had an interest in politics 2013-2015 UK = 1924/1934/2057.