Newspapers are still the main source of information for rural Americans, survey says

Newspapers are still kings of the news in rural America, says a survey by the Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service and the Oklahoma Office of Rural Health. The study, which surveyed 1,863 people in 12 rural Oklahoma communities between March 2013 and June 2014, found that 42.2 percent of people get their information from newspapers, reports the Daily Yonder. The survey found that 19.8 percent of people get their information from social media, 14.7 percent from email and radio and 8.6 percent from websites.

When asked how they prefer to be informed of community events, 47.7 percent of people who responded through paper survey said newspapers, while 40.9 percent who responded electronically said newspapers, the Yonder writes. Social media was the second most popular answer, followed by email. Of the 12 communities surveyed, eight offer the local paper online. (Yonder graphic: Where respondents said they get information)

"Another study completed by the University of Missouri noted that in areas where the circulation size of the local newspaper was 15,000 or less that over two-thirds of residents read their local newspaper," writes the Yonder. "Forty-two percent of respondents from these small communities said their primary source of information was the 'newspaper' and 'newspaper’s website.'" (Read more)