What’s new
A poll conducted in early December showed that a majority of Americans are retreating from politics after the presidential election.
Why does it matter?
The poll, conducted by The Associated Press and NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, showed that about two-thirds of American adults say they have recently felt the need to limit their media consumption when it comes to politics and government.
The survey was conducted Dec. 5-9 with 1,251 adults using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeaks panel. The margin of error is plus or minus 3.7 percentage points.
Homesh Nasri/Rebecca Noble/Getty Images
What do you know?
About 7 in 10 Democrats say they have disengaged from political news recently.
This percentage is not high for Republicans, whose party won the presidential elections as President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take office on January 20. However, 6 in 10 Republicans also felt the need to take some time away from politics. The field and independents are similar, according to the Associated Press.
The poll also showed that after election season, people are more likely to reject celebrities, major corporations and professional athletes who speak out about politics. This comes after several big-name organizations and celebrities, such as Taylor Swift and Beyoncé, shared their thoughts throughout the election cycle.
For TV networks, the numbers between who was watching and who is watching now are likely more stark. Since Trump won re-election with 312 electoral votes, there has been a shift The Washington Post It has been described as the “stop news” movement, where people no longer want push notifications, TV news, or even podcast information.
MSNBC’s prime-time viewership averaged 620,000 people after Election Night through Dec. 13, Nielsen, which provides cross-media metrics, told The Associated Press. That’s 54 percent lower than the pre-election crowd the media saw. this year. MSNBC saw similar viewership issues after Trump’s 2016 presidential win, the Associated Press reported.
But MSNBC saw a rebound in its viewership after the start of the Trump administration in 2016.
CNN’s average has also declined since Election Day, to 45 percent. However, the Associated Press reported that CNN’s live broadcast and digital ratings were consistent.
By contrast, Republican-leaning Fox News saw a slight uptick in viewers, averaging 2.68 million people following the election. This is 13 percent higher than before the election.
Since the election, the Associated Press has reported that 72% of people who watch MSNBC, CNN or Fox News in the evening choose Fox compared to 53% before Election Day.
New York Times However, opinion columnist Charles Blow said in an article last week that people “absolutely” should not feel guilty about turning off the news recently.
“First, taking the time to lick wounds speeds up their healing,” Blue wrote. “Second, anger is expensive. It consumes an enormous amount of fuel, which must be replenished at some point. We do this by taking breaks to sit in solitude, touch the grass, and truly be present with our loved ones and clarify our purpose.”
The Associated Press found in its poll that some want news outlets like MSNBC to expand their audience to talk about political issues rather than a figurehead like Trump. They are looking for more in-depth narratives rather than one-sided opinions.
What people say
Ziad Aoun Allah of San Diego told the Associated Press:People are mentally exhausted. “Everyone knows what’s coming and we’re just taking some time.”
Brandon Wilson, a professor at California, said Washington Post: I pretty much stopped on a dime.
said Andrew DelPonte of Maryland Washington Post: “Maybe I was so over-informed before this election that now I just need to take a step back. The things I think I have control over are what’s useful now.”
Sam Good of Lincoln, Nebraska, told the Associated Press: “The last thing I was watching now was the interregnum.”
What’s next
While many politicians are “off” until the end of the year, the new session of Congress begins on January 3, and Trump will be sworn in on January 20.
