November 2005    

Tuned Out: Why Americans Under 40 Don't Follow the News Author: David T.Z. Mindich Publisher: Oxford University Press $17.00 Paper (172 p.) ISBN: 0195161416 B&T         YBP Reviewed by Julie Marston, Customer Service Bibliographer As the subtitle suggests, David Mindich's book sets out to prove that people under forty don't follow the news, and then suggests some reasons and solutions. The proof is gathered from respected public research institutions such as the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, the DDB Needham Life Style Survey and the US Census Bureau. He also uses interviews which he has conducted himself with such harrowing questions as "Can you name the justices of the Supreme Court?" and "Who were the candidates in the 2000 election?" He also debunks the notion that people in their 20's and 30's use the internet to get news. Mindich states in the introduction to his book that: "After all, there is no democracy without an informed citizenry, and the future of our democracy depends on young people tuning back in." Therefore we should consider his research of the utmost importance. He also notes that people who are involved in their community are usually more tolerant neighbors. One reason for the decline in news consumption, he notes, is the shift in news coverage from the political to the entertaining, which he sees as evidence of a larger social break down. Particularly television news often spends much more air time on the latest murder than on what the US Congress is doing. Another reason, he insists, is that the internet has brought global communication at the expense of local communication, and that cable television has further divided once shared interests. He contends that people can now communicate with people in other countries over the web, yet they have no idea who their neighbors are. Mindich blames the present system of journalism for being biased toward corporate sponsors and the government. He regrets that the current generation of young people will never experience the Walter Cronkite effect, where one news anchor's opinion has the effect of swaying public opinion. He notes that good journalism is expensive and, due to the lack of new readers, has to feature more advertising. To sell this advertising, there is pressure to target a publication or broadcast toward a certain demographic. When large corporations sponsor the news, it is a safe bet that any negative news about those companies will go unreported. Mindich offers several solutions for reaching out to create a new audience for news. First he thinks we should gear news for children and put it on in segments along with typical children's fare (cartoons etc.) He also feels that the government should mandate that a "news portal" be included on every computer desktop. Based on his interviews with school children who -- when exposed to the newspaper on a daily basis -- actually read it, he believes that if news is more available, young people will pay more attention. Next, he suggests that we should change public expectation towards new knowledge. For example, if a college admissions interview required the ability to discourse on current events, it would serve as a mandate for aspiring college students to follow the news. Third, he extols us to make news matter. "Today, politics still matters, but so much of it is so scripted that its vibrancy is hidden and its meaning is often shrouded by the nonsense of polling." (p. 120) He feels that political mandates for candidates and free air time for all who care to run for office would be one way to make news matter. He also insists that if journalism were of a higher quality, and accessible, young people would pay attention. He believes the public can demand this quality with its buying power. Although David Mindich makes some salient points about the current state of the news media and its viewership, he tends to lose the focus in each chapter with a dearth of other connecting ideas. However, this book is worth reading. Published by YBP Library Services 999 Maple St., Contoocook, NH 03229 USA v: 800.258.3774   f: 603.746.5628 w: www.ybp.com   e: academia@ybp.com All rights reserved.