Return to (the new) Normal
If you have yet to check out our new State of Media 2025 report, do so now. And if you have already taken a peek, then a big finding is that media use is down across the board, especially for men. This is not to cause alarm for the media industry. We at Crowd React Media think this represents a return to (the new) normal.
The arrival of the Covid-19 pandemic on American soil upended media as we knew it. Americans began to spend unprecedented amounts of their days consuming content on their various devices. Outlets literally had a captive audience. News media had an audience that was (naturally) fearful and hung on to every last broadcast, headline and polemic. Social media had us hooked for it was the only way we could connect with most other people beyond our immediate families. Zoom and videoconferencing became staples of work-life (especially among white-collar workers). Podcast hosts became stand-ins for your real-life friends. Screentime regularly extended to almost every waking hour for a good many people. Videogames gave others an outlet, a salve for their boredom and lack of productivity. The digital world became the sole means of existence for some. Even linear formats retained audiences. The American people were boundless in their appetites for media content, because they were (mostly) stuck at home.
However, it’s been 5 years since the onset of the pandemic on American soil. There are many that have declared ‘The End of the Pandemic’. In truth, only in the last year or so has American life begun to resemble pre-pandemic times. Some high-engagement activities of our pandemic lives are here to stay: Videoconferencing, Social Media, YouTube, and Streaming TV. Others have effectively stabilized in a manner that resembles their usage rates in the pre-covid era: Linear mediums (cable/radio), Music Streaming, Videogames, News Media consumption.
It’s taken some time, but public life has been restored in America. The pandemic is firmly in the rear-view mirror. This poses a problem for some media formats: They presumed that the media usage rates would continue and not abate, that the surge in media consumption throughout the pandemic years would hold steady for the foreseeable future. This did not come to pass. Americans are going outside and socializing and dating and hanging out in public spaces (been to a bar, recently? – They are packed). This has led to less time spent consuming media content overall.
There are notable exceptions to a general reduction in American media consumption. Namely, audiences are still spending a lot of time on social media, YouTube, and Streaming TV. These are what you could call the media ‘victors’ of the Covid-19 era. While other formats are nowhere near being in bad health, some habits from this period carried on to the era we refer to as the ‘new normal’.
This is all for today and thanks for stopping by.
I am Sean Bos and it has been a pleasure.
