In trying to disentangle the forces that shape online news consumption, it might help to list several ways broadband could influence news consumption patterns.

• A broadband connection might add to the total number of news sources people turn to on the average day. The “always on” connection might enable users to more frequently consult more news sources than is possible with a dial-up connection.
• A broadband connection might substitute for other news sources. Some users might not bother with the newspaper or TV news given the easy availability of online news over a home broadband connection.
• Broadband might have a supplementary effect; users may get online news more often than they did when they have dial-up, but their overall daily news consumption may not be radically different than before.