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News Influencers Fact Sheet

News influencers on social media have become a popular alternative to traditional journalists and news organizations as a source of news for many Americans. This fact sheet looks at Americans’ experiences with news influencers on social media.

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    Bloggers Grade Obama, Revolt over Facebook

    The most prominent narrative in social media online last week shifted from the stimulus bill to a critique of Obama’s first month in office. While the economic crisis was still a large topic, a policy change at Facebook created an uproar that forced the site to then change course.

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    Most Feel a Personal Stake in Tracking Economic News

    Summary of Findings Americans continue to follow news about the economic crisis closely because they feel it is directly relevant to their lives. More than eight-in-ten (85%) say even when the economic news is bad they feel better knowing what’s going on, while 77% say they need to stay on top of economic news because […]

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    Stimulus News Seen As More Negative Than Positive

    Summary of Findings As the contentious debate over President Obama’s $800 billion economic stimulus plan played out in Congress over the past week, more Americans were hearing bad things than good things about the legislation. Close to half (48%) of the public says that what they were reading and hearing about the plan in the […]

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    The News Narrative Turns Bearish on Obama

    It wasn’t much of a honeymoon, at least so far. And nowhere did the discussion of the economic crisis and the new Administration seem to beat up the President more roundly than in the studios of cable talk shows and, of course, on the radio.

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    Policy Issues Overshadow Personal Stories in Obama’s First Weeks

    Summary of Findings The public focused much more on President Obama’s major policy proposals and decisions than on lighter, more personal stories about the new president and his family in the early days of his administration. Nearly seven-in-ten Americans (69%) say they heard a lot about Obama’s push for quick action on his economic stimulus […]

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Pew Research Center illustration for America's News Influencers report; photos via Getty Images

America’s News Influencers

This study explores the makeup of the social media news influencer universe, including who they are, what content they create and who their audiences are.

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