Media in demand in Corona times, but poorly paid
In times of crisis in general—and during the COVID-19 pandemic in particular—the public turns to news journalism. However, this increased usage does not generate additional revenue for the media. On the contrary: advertising revenue is plummeting, and online, people are reluctant to pay.
This is why new payment models are needed. Direct media funding also remains indispensable, as the Research Center for the Public Sphere and Society (Fög) at the University of Zurich points out in its yearbook "Quality of the Media 2020" published on Monday.
The center has been examining the development of the Swiss media every year since 2010. Since then, no other event has had such a strong impact on the Swiss media as the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the report.
Trust in traditional media
The findings show that people are increasingly turning to the information media during the crisis. The need for verified facts and reliable information is increasing. Regardless of age, people put their trust in traditional media. 44 percent of those surveyed said they trusted these media. The figure for social media was only 19 percent.
A study published in advance by the Fög also found that the quality of pandemic reporting was relatively high. However, this cannot compensate for the slump in advertising revenue through the increase in readership. On the contrary: the pandemic is exacerbating the precarious financial situation that information journalism has been in for years.
News grouches largest group
Younger people also consumed more news during the pandemic, but only for a short time. Young people with below-average news consumption now make up the largest user group at 37%.
The Fög investigated this phenomenon in more detail. It was found that this group is interested in mobilizing topics such as climate strikes or #Metoo if the information fits in with their own identity or environment.
They prefer news that is attractively presented, easy to understand and easy to integrate into everyday life. News abstainers only want to pay for this if journalistic content from different media is offered on a platform with a flat rate.
Less classification
Another conclusion of the report is that the media's dependence on experts is increasing during the coronavirus crisis. This is hardly surprising, as only 2.1 percent of all media articles deal with science. This proportion has remained stable over the last five years.
The media's categorization performance fell drastically. In 2019, 14% of articles were used for categorization, compared to 36% in 2015.
As in previous years, a decline in diversity was also evident in 2019. The media covered an ever smaller range of topics and geographical areas.
Diversity also decreased within the media, as more and more people are sharing the same posts. The proportion of these shared articles rose from 10% to 21% between 2017 and 2019. This was particularly pronounced in national political reporting. There, the proportion of shared articles rose from 21% in 2017 to 41% in 2019.
Little willingness to pay
New payment systems are gaining in importance in view of falling advertising revenues. However, only 13% of the population wanted to pay for online news in 2020, compared to 10% in 2016. At 19%, young women between the ages of 18 and 24 were the most willing to pay.
According to Fög, this raises hopes that a generation is growing up that is willing to pay. New payment models tailored to the needs of the younger generation, such as "Spotify for journalism", could also have an impact. (SDA)
