Sunday, April 1, 2007

New Study Challenges Conventional Web Wisdom

A new survey by the Poynter Institute found that web news readers have a greater attention span than print readers, according to a Reuters report.

"The EyeTrack07 survey by the Poynter Institute, a Florida-based journalism school, found online readers read 77 percent of what they chose to read while broadsheet newspaper readers read an average of 62 percent, and tabloid readers about 57 percent.

Sara Quinn, director of the Poynter EyeTrack07 project, said this was the first large public study internationally to compare the differences between how people read the news online and in newspapers.

She said they were surprised to find that such a large percentage of story text was read online as this exploded the myth that Web readers had a shorter attention span."

Some traditional notions were reinforced: readers were more attracted to and retained more information from stories presented in alternative formats like Q & A, lists, short sidebars, and timelines.

Read the full article here.

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