Thanks to the pandemic, young viewers have a newfound appetite for local TV news programs. Sure, young people are still using social media to keep up with what’s going on, but due to the pandemic and recent political happenings, many of them have turned to local news to keep up with current events. According to Nielsen, growth by age for news has “skyrocketed” year-on-year by as much as 100% among 18-24-year-olds, while it’s up by 30% among 12-17-year-olds. Local news networks like NBCLX have reported seeing “double digit increases” among 18-24-year-olds. One executive says the figures don’t surprise them since young viewers “are hungry for information.” (Variety)
