Let’s start with the two most favorite traditional media in Greece: newspapers and TV. They occupy the 15th and 16th position respectively in a list of 22 of “institutions” most trusted by Greek citizens. Amazing! Not even at half the list. The survey, which was conducted by MRB in December 2013, showed that the Army and Church were the most trusted institutions, while the European Central Bank and the Intentional Monetary Fund came last (in 21st and 22nd position). Regarding newspaper and TV, the survey showed that the level of trust is highest among people older than 45 years old as younger people are keener in searching for news online. Last but not least, the survey indicated that the level of trust for newspapers and TV has been constantly dropping since 2005, when the trust was 33.1% in TV and 32.6% in newspapers while in 2013 the percentage rates dropped to 17.2% and 18.6% respectively.
As I just quoted a source from last year, I will continue with an article published in 2013 by Rachel Donadio, a New York Times reporter, entitled Greeks Question Media, and new Voices Pipe Up, which points at the reasons why people in Greece are challenging the mainstream news media (mostly because they are owned in their majority by business elite and because Greeks believe that the mainstream news media and politicians share a strongly intertwined bond) and explains why Greeks are turning to news from non-traditional sources (often small and left-leaning) that have made their appearance in the country in recent years (since 2008 when the financial crisis erupted) and are playing and increasingly vital role in the conversation.
My next point is again based on a survey conducted in 2013 by the Information Society about the new technologies used by Greeks. The survey stated that the number of Greeks using the internet on a regular basis is constantly increasing. Specifically, the survey indicated that 81% of Greeks use the internet daily, mostly to get informed on services and products (76.7%). Reading online news and social media activity came in third and fifth place (70.5% and 51.4% respectively) among the five main online activities of Greek users. As regards access to the internet, personal computers were heavily in the lead with 91.5% leaving smart phones behind in total defeat.
Good statistics about the mobile usage in Greeks and how Greeks use digital devices to get their news comes from Tempo OMD. I will not go into details as you can get the information in that slideshare presentation. One of the main findings, though, I would like to share with you, was that Greeks are using their digital devices primarily for entertainment and secondly to read news (of which the most popular search concerned weather forecast?!). Another interesting observation concerned multi-screening habits while watching TV with networking coming first (especially FB, Google+ and Twitter).
Now back to the title question, which media wins? To be honest, I am not sure. One thing is for sure: news consumption is not a one-dimensional habit. The media will never stop surprising us. So, what is coming next?
