Understanding the “alt-news media’s” size and influence.

It seems like the mainstream news media has all but disappeared in the last year, doesn't it? If Pew Research Center surveys are to be believed, however, that is not quite true. At least not yet.. According to this September 2025 Pew fact sheet:

*A majority of U.S. adults (64%) get news from television at least sometimes. This includes 32% who say they often get news from TV, which has stayed fairly steady over the last few years.

• Yet a large majority (86%) say they at least sometimes get news from a smartphone, computer or tablet, including 56% who say they do so often.
  *And, in 2025 only 11% of U.S. adults say they often get news from radio, while 7% say the same about printed newspapers or magazines.

Still, social media, on-line influencers/podcasters, and (soon) AI likely will dominate the future of news. That is if Americans continue to pay attention at all, given all of the alternatives competing for eyeballs, like sports and entertainment news, etc. All this ignores that, thanks to Trump, political news increasingly resembles professional wrestling and its trash talk.

The "Alt news media" is barely alt these days. We are being micro-niched into smaller and smaller slices, and the slices probably share less and less common ground on matters of public interest. Famously, much of the public inhabits different factual universes when it comes to politics and civic affairs. But they also are drifting towards alternate realities on basic information about things like health advice, basic public health facts, and just knowledge in general of how other people live and what they believe.

The potential for exploitation is immense, and we see it all the time.

Our topic maybe could focus on the basics. Where do Americans get their news and opinions about the news from in 2026? How influential is the "MSM" still? What about local news (and is local news still locally produced)? Do most adults curate their own news; i.e., pick what they see and read for themselves? Or do we just imagine ourselves free to choose while algorithms with, ahem, alt motives, do the picking for us?

And of course: What exactly is the "alt media?" Who owns it, runs it, and determines its content? Who is popular and influential in alt news media? How can we stay united as a nation if our MSM is either (a) gone, (b) replaced by scores or more alt media sources, or (c) replaced by just a few sources (inc. AI!) that masquerade as diverse but really are not?

Join Civilized Conversation on Monday, June 8th for a roundtable on this urgent issue. The week before the mtg check back here for a few gently optional background readings.

Background Readings (optional) –

• TBA.