75% of teenagers watch TV news at least once per weekIn an effort to better understand which news stories resonate with today’s teenagers, StageofLife.com, a blogging community focused on literary and free educational resources, gave a survey to students across the country. The results show that 84% of teenagers pay attention to the news and 42% still read the newspaper.

StageofLife.com surveyed 389 of its site visitors from April 1 to 30, 2013. Based on a Researchscape assessment of the questionnaire and methodology, this survey is only slightly likely to be representative of U.S. consumers in general: the results should be considered qualitative or directional in nature.

Teenagers are stereotyped for spending a lot of time on the TV, but some of that might be constructive: 36% of respondents watch TV news at least once per day.

How often do you watch TV news?
 Source: StageofLife.com, n = 389Researchscape.com 

The most common sources of news are TV, word of mouth, and the Internet:
  • 51% of respondents follow the news by watching network TV
  • 48% watch the news on cable TV
  • 47% get knowledge about current events from friends
  • 43% use news websites
How do you follow the news? Check all that apply…
 Source: StageofLife.com, n = 389Researchscape.com 

North Korea, Gay Marriage, and Gun Control Legislation were the top 3 news story topics that most interested respondents. Surprisingly, Obamacare and China’s battle against pollution interested teenagers more than the NCAA Basketball Tournament.

Which of these actual news story headlines below MOST interests you? Pick just one.
 Source: StageofLife.com, n = 389Researchscape.com 

For more information on this survey, refer to Gay Marriage, Gun Control, and North Korea Top List as Most Important News Stories to Teenagers According to StageofLife.com National Student Poll.