The Pew Internet for the American Life Project is out today with an important study about US news consumers that, in my view, is one of their best yet. While the data only covers the US, it could point to some global macro trends. You can download it here.

Key highlights…

  • While online, most people say they use between two and five online news sources and 65% say they do not have a single favorite website for news. Some 21% say they routinely rely on just one site for news and information

  • 75% of online news consumers say they get news forwarded through email or posts on social networking sites and 52% say they share links to news with others via the same. Those who use social networking sites such as Facebook are also more likely to rely on their tribe for news tips – 17% vs. 10% of those who are not on social networking sites

  • 57% of online Americans use social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace or LinkedIn – and 97% of them are online news consumers. Some 51% of the social networking users who are in the online-news population say that on a typical day they get news from people they follow on sites like Facebook. That amounts to 28% of all internet users who get news via social networking.

  • Some 37% of internet users have contributed to the creation of news, commentary about it, or dissemination of news via social media. They have done at least one of the following: commenting on a news story (25%); posting a link on a social networking site (17%); tagging content (11%), creating their own original news material or opinion piece (9%), or tweeting about news (3%)

    • So what does this all mean? The implications for PR are significant.

    To me at least, it shows that we are well into an age of Media Agnosticism, something I wrote about here.  It also reaffirms the Trust Barometer findings, which shows that informed publics need to hear things three to five times and from diverse sources before it is believed.

    Here are three considerations for companies:

    First, the study underscores that a single media placement – no matter how powerful – is no longer enough to reach the masses when attention spans are so marginalized. Businesses increasingly need to be ubiquitous in all key relevant venues – online and off. The more we can spread the ball around, the better.

    Second, companies clearly have an opportunity to tap into the power of social networks to amplify the stories that they do tell. This requires a mix of art (relationships, content, etc.) and science (data). Facebook is now a leading driver to news sites according to Hitwise.

    Finally, if consumers are media agnostic, as the study shows, then the door is open for businesses to become media companies themselves by creating or curating their own content. This isn’t easy, but the opportunity is there. And we have vast resources and expertise to do so.