Though the percentage of all internet users who get news online⁶ has not changed dramatically since the first “Generations” report, the oldest generations have experienced notable increases. In November 2008, 37% of internet users 74 and older said they had gotten news online, but by May 2010 that number had jumped to 54%. Similarly, 67% of internet users ages 65-73 now get news online, compared to 56% in November 2008.

Despite the modest growth in the overall percentage of adults who get news online, the ways in which people find and share their news are very different than they were when the Pew Internet Project first started asking about online news consumption earlier in the decade. As previous reports have noted, information is now portable, personalized, and participatory; people access news on-the-go and discuss it online with friends and family.

In terms of where people get news in a typical day, the internet has surpassed newspapers and radio in popularity and now ranks just behind TV. Looking closer at the data, some clear patterns emerge between the age groups. For instance, Millennials overwhelmingly go online for news (82% do this in a typical day, compared to 61% of all adults), but are less likely than older generations to get their news from a local television station (78% of all adults do this, including 90% of adults age 74 and older).