Marketagent survey

Majority refuse to read news about corona

According to a Market Agent survey, many people in Austria are avoiding news about coronavirus.

(Bild: zVg, APA/Helmut Fohringer, Krone KREATIV)

People in Germany avoid news about corona (58%) particularly often. This is followed by celebrities (37%) and war (35%), as a representative Marketagent survey has now shown.

A total of 1000 people were surveyed online. One in four of them would rather not deal with news about the climate crisis, while this applies to one in five people surveyed when it comes to domestic politics. The reasons vary. Many survey participants don't want to hear anything more about coronavirus, some doubt the truthfulness of the news or criticize the fact that it's always the same anyway. In contrast, negative emotions often play a role when it comes to war, but here too, the truthfulness is mistrusted.

No interest in domestic politics
When it comes to domestic politics and news about celebrities, respondents often state that they are simply not interested. A quarter are bored by domestic political reporting. According to the survey, the topics that people prefer to deal with are health, regional events, regional politics and food. "It therefore seems to be less about a general disenchantment with the news and more about a deliberate and targeted turning away from certain content," says Thomas Schwabl, Managing Director of Marketagent.

So it seems to be less about a general disenchantment with news and more about a conscious and targeted rejection of certain content.

Thomas Schwabl, Geschäftsführer von Marketagent

Many "pragmatists"
 Overall, 82 percent also stated that they were interested in current affairs. Slightly more than four in ten (44%) can be classified as "news pragmatists". They inform themselves about the essentials, but spare themselves the details. In contrast, 16% classify themselves as "news junkies" who always try to stay up to date. Just behind them are the "news grouches", who often cannot bring themselves to keep up to date.

There were differences according to age. Older people - 14 to 75-year-olds were surveyed - are more likely to follow current news than younger people. Those who actively avoid the news want high-quality and less manipulative reporting.