That, according to a study commissioned by the Radio and Television News Directors Foundation. It gives radio news managers a tool to use as they plan their future programming.
Primary findings show that the public sees news as a welcome addition to radio programming.
More than half of listeners report paying close attention to news when it comes on, and an additional 37 percent say they use news as background. In addition, two-thirds of the audience agrees that the quality of news on radio is improving. Most news followers who listen to radio expect radio news to provide information about local events. Looking toward the future, the survey found that 17 percent of people who go online had listened to radio on the Internet in the past month. It also found that African-American and Hispanic audiences listen to more radio than the general population.