• January 8, 2003

Republicans are more likely to use talk radio for news than Democrats. That is just one finding in a major new survey of media usage by Gallup. Talk radio’s impact on the election has been getting a lot of press lately, particularly as Democrats charge that the Republicans are using talk shows like Rush Limbaugh and Fox News Channel to win votes. Gallup looked at where partisans get their news each day, with talk radio and NPR among the options. The findings: 29% of Republicans tune into talk radio daily, compared to 15% of Democrats. Independents were in the middle, with 21% using talk radio each day. Even so, Gallup says only about 3 out of 10 Republicans listen to radio talk shows on a daily basis. “It is difficult, therefore, to argue that the thinking of the entire Republican base across the country is being controlled by such radio talk shows,” says Gallup. We’d also point out the difference was nearly non-existent, however, when comparing usage of NPR. 23% of Republicans tuned-into NPR each day, compared to 22% of Democrats.