Switched has a new home! Huffpost Tech.

Click here to visit the new home of Switched!

Hot on HuffPost Tech:

See More Stories
AOL Tech

News Readers Could Save Print by Reaching into Their Pockets

by Lee Bains on January 15, 2010 at 08:24 AM

A recent poll conducted by Harris Interactive, and cited by CNET, puts forth an ominous conclusion: a mere 23-percent of Web-surfing U.S. adults are willing to pay for their online news. As the death knell of print journalism reaches a deafening clamor, the statistic does not seem to bode well for news outlets -- or for those of us who like to stay informed.

Fortunately, though, the inquiring minds at The Atlantic swallowed their fear, looked past the headlines, and found more cause for hope than reason for despair. Buried in the report was one powerful statistic: 43-percent of those surveyed read the news (online or otherwise) nearly every day. That being the case, a new, much more optimistic conclusion emerged. A full 53-percent of daily news readers are willing to drop some coin to have knowledge dropped on them.

With digital piracy in full swing, and our national sense of entitlement growing ever stronger, this is a remarkable finding. Considering that news outlets are already able to collect revenue from online advertisers, this could mean that newspapers will survive, after all -- and that we, thankfully, won't have to subsist on ridiculous TV programming. [From: The Atlantic and CNET]

Tags: deathofprint, e-newspaper, journalism, newspaper, the atlantic, TheAtlantic, top

HuffPost AOL Social News Most Popular