Great international interest in US election

CNN's outstanding ratings and website traffic in the US confirm this result, according to a CNN statement. To understand the global impact and interest in the US election, CNN commissioned independent market research firm Toluna to study the opinions, viewing and usage habits of adults from over 23 countries in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, South America, Canada and the Asia-Pacific region on the race for the White House.

The results of the "CNN US Election Global View" study show that 51 percent of respondents watch or use CNN to find out about the current status and results of the US election. This means that CNN performs better than all other international news providers combined: BBC comes in at 19 percent, Reuters at five percent and Sky News at four percent. 78 percent of respondents watch or follow CNN regularly. 83 percent of them have used the CNN Politics service in the past week. The majority of respondents get their information linearly on CNN - 50 percent via TV, 31 percent via CNN.com, 14 percent via CNN's social media channels and eight percent via the CNN app. Commenting on CNN's coverage of the US election, 66 percent found the international news channel's information to be knowledgeable and intelligent, 64 percent considered it to be technically competent, 64 percent comprehensive, 62 percent engaging and 60 percent standard-setting.

In addition to examining user behavior, the personal interest of the respondents in the US election also plays a role in the survey. The main reasons for this are:
- General international importance (68 percent)
- Importance for their own country (47 percent)
- Possible individual economic impact (38 percent)
- Insight into the US political system (35 percent)
- Indication of Americans' world view (34 percent)
- Interest in the incumbent presidential candidates (33 percent)

Respondents gave the following reasons for the global relevance of the presidential election:
- Important role of the USA in the global economy (64 percent)
- Impact on international relations (63 percent)
- Role of the USA in global security and the fight against terrorism (57 percent)
- Trade policy and a shift to a tougher US foreign policy stance (both 43%).

Why the US election is captivating the world...

A commentary by Petra Malenicka, Senior Vice President, Western Europe & The Americas, Advertising Sales, CNN International

It's a topic that everyone has an opinion on. Whether in meetings, on the plane or talking to my children - everyone is talking about the presidential election campaign in America, which seems to be heading towards a duel between Clinton and Trump. There is still some time until the final election in November, but the most diverse people I come into contact with are already captivated. This is reflected not least in CNN US's impressive ratings and website hits. But the question remains: beyond my personal experience, how relevant is the election for the international audience?

As a company that prefers to base its decisions on facts rather than intuition, we commissioned a study to understand how the world is following one of the biggest news events of 2016. Independent market research company Toluna analyzed the opinions, viewing and usage habits of adults from almost 5,000 interviews from over 23 countries in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, South America, Canada and the Asia-Pacific region. The results show such a high level of interest that even I was surprised: 85% of respondents consider the US election to be important for world events and 73% are personally interested in the race for the White House.

The main reasons for this are:
- General international importance (68 percent)
- Importance for their own country (47 percent)
- Possible individual economic impact (38 percent)
- Insight into the US political system (35 percent)
- Indication of Americans' world view (34 percent)
- Interest in the incumbent presidential candidates (33 percent)
The last point in particular piqued my interest. With all the discussions about the so-called "Trump effect", interest in the incumbent presidential candidate is only in sixth place.
Respondents gave the following reasons for the global relevance of the presidential election:
- Important role of the USA in the global economy (64 percent)
- Impact on international relations (63 percent)
- Role of the USA in global security and the fight against terrorism (57 percent)
- Trade policy and a shift to a tougher US foreign policy stance (both 43 percent)

It is clear that respondents around the world see this election as a defining moment in American foreign policy.

In addition to the global interest in the election, we were also interested in finding out how and through which channels respondents obtain information on the topic. The results of the study speak for themselves: more than half of those surveyed, namely 51%, use CNN to follow the current status and results of the US election. This means that CNN performs better than all other international news providers combined: BBC comes in at 19 percent, Reuters at five percent and Sky News at four percent. Even though we had hoped for this result, confirmation from an independent study is important for us. With so much on offer in the media landscape, the battle for attention and viewers is fierce. Another interesting aspect is which channels the respondents use to obtain information. The majority inform themselves linearly on CNN - 50 percent via TV, 31 percent via CNN.com, 14 percent via CNN's social media channels and eight percent via the CNN app. Contrary to the pessimism - linear television is alive and well, although it is being expanded to include digital offerings.

This study is an important tool to provide marketers and media professionals with a quantitative assessment of how engaged the world is with the current US election campaign. It is often said that the money follows the audience and with our advertising strategies we offer the opportunity to do just that. Now we have tangible proof of the public's thirst for knowledge about the presidential election, which we want to satisfy with the new show "State of the Race" on CNN International. My tip to national advertisers: Be part of what the world is talking about. Regardless of regional political developments and the upcoming election results in November - the US election cannot be ignored because the world is watching with great interest.