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It’s no surprise that Americans are divided in what news they consume… but how divided are we when it comes to how actively we seek out the news?
From February to June 2025, Navigator Research explored the information consumption habits of 6,000 U.S. adults, identifying who was an active or a passive news seeker. “Active” news seekers are defined as those who turn on the national news or open a news app, for example. On the other hand, “passive” news seekers are those who happen upon news in their regular media consumption – for example, by seeing an infographic as they scroll on a social media app.
What they found: Americans are nearly split between active and passive news consumption. 57% of adults overall said they seek out news (active consumers), while 43% of adults said news comes to them (passive consumers). Zooming in, stark differences emerge across demographics: Overall, older, male, and college-educated audiences are more active news consumers, while younger, female, and non-college-educated audiences are more passive news consumers.
When it comes to how these different consumers actually see their news, active news consumers rely on broadcast TV (45% of active news consumers say this is a main news source for them), local TV (44%), and online news websites (37%); just 15% of active consumers said they get their news from social media creators. Conversely, passive news consumers mostly saw their news on social media websites (41%) – like Facebook, X, and YouTube – and local TV (33%).
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