They Do Know and They Do Care : Young People's News Habits and How They Changed During the Covid-19 Pandemic in Sweden

Abstract: This thesis set out to examine news habits among Swedish 15-20 year olds during the spring of 2020 but then the Covid-19 pandemic hit. Following the events and its possible implications on news consumption, the focus shifted towards also looking at how young people’s news habits might change during the pandemic. This study was primarily aimed at better understanding the relationship between young people and news by implementing theories relating to their motivations and how they connect to society. The method used to examine this was online surveys. Additionally, by building on research from the 2009 Swine flu pandemic the survey aimed at improving the understanding of news’ relevance in the context of the digitized media landscape and evolved use of social media. From the results it seems respondents had a bigger need for news and information during Covid-19. Results showed that young people have an interest in news and care about what goes on in society. Factors such as political interest and education level indicated higher news consumption but not as much in relation to the pandemic. Social media was important for the overall news consumption. Those discussing current events with friends and family were also more likely to consume news to a greater extent than those who did not. This study concludes that the decline in youth news consumption previously observed, might not be as severe and that the role of social media is a crucial element. It is also evident that the Covid-19 pandemic increased young people’s news consumption and they turn to the news for information and to better understand what goes on in the world around them.