This study compares news consumption and engagement patterns related to public affairs news between mobile news consumers—digital natives and digital immigrants. Using data from a purposive web survey of mobile news consumers ( n = 520) analyzed using partial least squares multi-group analysis, the study found no significant generational differences across most factors, except that news credibility significantly influenced mobile news consumption, with a stronger effect observed among digital immigrants. This implies that older individuals consume more public affairs news when they perceive it as credible. The findings of this study suggest that the generational gap in mobile news use is narrowing in Asia, including Malaysia. The study highlights the importance of credibility cues for digital immigrants and emphasizes the need to further strengthen the practice of news literacy. Our findings have important theoretical and managerial implications for addressing generational gaps in mobile news consumption.
This qualitative study examines hiring difficulties in local television (TV) news in small and medium TV markets (DMA #30+). The results of in-depth interviews showed that most interviewed news directors experienced talent shortages in their markets and had fewer and less prepared applicants for reporter and producer positions than several years ago. This has resulted in a growing number of news directors hiring younger and non-traditional applicants without a journalism degree. The paper discusses the ways news directors adapt to the hiring challenges and provides recommendations about how to address these issues. It also examines the findings through the lens of supply and demand economic theory and the organizational prestige framework.
Media system dependency theory posits that during times of crisis, individuals are more dependent on mass media for information, leading to attitudinal and behavioral change. The outset of the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring of 2020 provided a unique opportunity to study the impact of a global crisis within a new media context dominated by social and digital media. Using a cross-sectional survey administered in the United States at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the present study found support for media dependency's impact on knowledge and engagement in protective behaviors. Television news was the strongest positive predictor, while radio dependency was found to have a negative impact, and social media dependency had none.
Push notifications have become a crucial touchpoint between news organizations and mobile audiences, yet little is known about how organizations strategically frame these brief messages. Drawing on framing theory, this study examines 3,459 push notifications from 11 major news organizations using data from Project Push, overcoming previous data collection limitations. Through quantitative content analysis, we investigate how organizations differ in their framing approaches across topic selection, urgency, news type, locality, calls to action, clickbait language, and message length. Results reveal significant organizational variation: some outlets prioritize traditional news values with longer, urgent, informative notifications, while others emphasize engagement through shorter, clickbait-heavy messages. Topic-based patterns emerge, with inherently urgent topics receiving straightforward framing while softer news relies on curiosity-provoking language. These findings extend framing theory to the constrained mobile environment and demonstrate how organizational priorities and brand identities manifest in push notification strategies, with implications for audience engagement and journalistic credibility.
