Younger adults prefer to get news on mobile, older on computers % of those who get news on both mobile and computer who prefer
Heightened adoption of mobile devices for news among older adults is due in part to the fact that they had considerably more room to grow than younger adults. Mobile news use, like internet use and mobile ownership in general, was already very high among younger adults, leaving little room for growth compared with older adults. For example, 94% of both those ages 18 to 29 and 30 to 49 get news on mobile – unchanged since 2016 for 18- to 29-year-olds and only a 9-point rise for the 30-49 group. By contrast, among those ages 50 to 64 and those 65 and older, increases of 16 and 24 points respectively in the past year have resulted in majorities in every age group now getting news on mobile. A recent Pew Research Center report similarly found a sharp rise in overall technology adoption among older Americans.
Even though a large number of older adults are getting news on mobile devices, that doesn’t mean they prefer it. Across all adults, a clear majority of those who get news on both mobile devices and desktop/laptop computers prefer to get their news on mobile (65%). But those 65 and older are the only age group in which less than half prefer to do so: Only 44% prefer mobile, compared with about three-quarters of those 18 to 29 (77%), figures that have remained steady for both groups over the past year. In the next-highest age group, those 50 to 64, about half now prefer to get their news on mobile (54%), up from about four-in-ten (41%) a year ago.
Younger adults prefer to get news on  | mobile, older on computers  | % of those who get news on both mobile and computer  | who prefer  | Desktop/laptop  | Mobile  | 23%  | 77%  | 18-29  | 30-49  | 28  | 72  | 50-64 43  | 54  | 65+ 51  | 44  | Source: Survey conducted March 13-27, 2017.  | PEW RESEARCH CENTER 