Interesting News, They’d Read It on a Paper Bag
The Poynter Institute released findings of its EyeTrack07 study. The thrust, captured in part by a Marketplace radio quote from newspaper design consultant Alan Jacobson, is:
they will read it if we print it on a paper bag, if they care about it.
This from the Poynter Institute report on the findings:
You can’t get much more basic than the lead finding of Poynter’s EyeTrack07 study, presented this morning to the American Society of Newspaper Editors in Washington, D.C.
Readers select stories of particular interest and then read them thoroughly.
And there’s a twist: The reading-deep phenomenon is even stronger online than in print.
At a time when readers are assumed to have short attention spans, especially those who read online, this qualifies as news.
Here is a telling little twist of the future of newspaper readership. The Poynter Institute people suggest if you want to learn more about how people read newspapers, then watch this video.
