Nearly one-third of Americans under the age of 40 say satirical news-oriented television programs like The Colbert Report and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart are taking the place of traditional news outlets.
Thirty-two percent (32%) of adults ages 30-39 believe this to be true, while 42% disagree, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.
from Rasmussen Reports
National Survey of 1,000 Adults (All Ages)
Conducted March 21-22, 2009
By Rasmussen Reports
1* Do programs like The Colbert Report and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart make Americans more informed or less informed about news events?
39% More informed
21% Less informed
12% If they have no impact = > 33% Less informed or No Impact
28% Not sure
2* Are programs like The Colbert Report and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart taking the place of traditional news outlets?
24% Yes
45% No
31% Not sure
3* How influential are programs like The Colbert Report and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart in shaping your political opinions – very influential, somewhat influential, not very influential, not at all influential?
7% Very influential
14% Somewhat influential => 21% infuential
26% Not very influential
44% Not at all influential => 70% NOT influential
9% Not sure
NOTE: Margin of Sampling Error, +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.
