• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, November 17, 2015

According to the Media Insight Project, a program of the American Press Institute and The Associated Press, in a series of major studies on the habits of news consumers in the United States, the vast majority of Millennials, Americans age 18 to 34, regularly use paid content for entertainment or news.

Moreover, a younger adult’s willingness to pay for news is correlated with his or her broader beliefs about the value of news. The Millennials who want to stay connected with the world, who are interested in news, and who are more engaged with news on social networks are the most likely to be willing to personally pay for news.

Millennials who do regularly use, and often personally pay for, news content, challenge the notion that Millennials believe everything on the web must be free, says the report. But there are still significant obstacles that will make a paid or subscription model a challenge for publishers looking to reach the next generation of news consumers.

53% of US Millennials report having regularly consumed paid news content, in print, digital, or combined formats in the past year, according to a recent report from The Media Insight Project. 40% of Millennials say they have paid for news products or services out of their own pocket in the past year.

Millennials over the age of 21 are about twice as likely as those 18-21 to pay for news personally; 44% of respondents age 30-34 pay for news out of their own pocket, compared with 23% of those 18-21 years old.

38% of respondents say they have regularly consumed paid print news products (newspapers, magazines, etc.) in the past year; 41% have consumed combined print/digital news products, and 21% from digital-only outlets.

Some 21% of respondents say they regularly pay for magazines themselves, and 15% say they regularly pay for print newspapers.

Not surprisingly, Millennials who believe keeping up with the news is extremely or very important, are significantly more likely to personally pay for news compared with those who do not.

However, even among Millennials who believe keeping up with the news is important, just 50% pay for news products out of their own pockets.

Facebook, television, and search engines are the most commonly used sources to learn about topics—both for Millennials who believe keeping up with the news is important and for those who do not, says the report.

For additional information from the Media Insight Report, please visit here.