Five myths about young newspaper readers September 10, 2007 7:49 AM A South African newspaper executive has identified five supposed myths about young newspaper readers. Gavin Rheeder, marketing communications manager of Beeld, an Afrikaans daily, bases his argument on information garnered from Beeld's publication of JIP, a weekly youth supplement.
Though his list appears to be specific to the South Africa's Afrikaans population I think it has wider relevance. So here it is... 1. Youth is homogenous The young are often treated in the media as a universal, homogenous group. Nothing could be further from the truth. This is a diverse market with varied interests, tastes and opinions. 2. The young don't read South Africa does struggle with illiteracy, but Afrikaans youth are avid readers, currently grazing a number of publications and reading online. They are sceptics who feel uncomfortable trusting a single authoritative source. 3. The young don't like newspapers This myth is tied to the first myth, linked to the belief that the youth believe that the newspaper day has come and gone. Rheeder comments: "We discount this theory... With the right content presented with appealing graphics the young do enjoy reading newspapers." 4. The young want soft issues This isn't necessarily false, but it's not true either. Give the youth some fun-oriented products, but don't treat them as kids. They also want to hear strong opinions and be considered as responsible citizens. "They take their role as socially responsible citizens seriously and eschew the reckless behaviour of previous generations," comments Rheeder. 5. The young want slang They can sniff an adult talking down to them a mile away. While they like easy-to-read language, they don't appreciate the use of "hip" language. I suspect that this list, albeit in general terms, is applicable in Britain too. http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/greenslade/2007/09/five_myths_about_young_newspap.html mediacare http://www.mediacare.biz
