Uses and Gratifications in Online News: Comparing Social Media and News Media Use by Users

Abstract

This study investigates the uses and gratifications obtained from reading news online in News Media and Social Media. A comparison is done between these two (News Media and Social Media) related to what type of needs does each of these media fulfil. It also examines the trust and interactivity that participants illustrate in reading news online. A questionnaire was distributed and quantitative analysis was conducted in order to examine the above. A sample of 156 university students completed the questionnaire. A factor analysis on uses and gratifications obtained from News Media and Social Media revealed four factors i.e. Information, Discussion, Entertainment and Surveillance. Results also revealed that (a) Social Media is more about Entertainment whereas News Media is more about Surveillance. No statistical significant differences were obtained related to the gratification of Information and Discussion between the media (b) the intensity of reading online news in News Media depends mainly on how well informed the users would like to be (c) the intensity of reading news in Social Media depends mainly on the age of the user (d) the users trust more News Media rather than Social Media concerning the news they read online.