As reported by the Newspaper Society: Commissioned by Havas PR UK, the CSR and the Local Community survey found that 67 per cent of people trust local newspapers in terms of finding out what’s happening in their local community.
That compares to just 29 per cent among 25-34 year olds who trust the messages they receive through Facebook and only 10 per cent of those aged 55 and over.
Sixty-seven per cent of people getting their news about the local community from a local newspaper, dropping to 24 per cent for national newspapers while regional radio is used by 35 per cent of people.
Echoing the findings of Loving Local, a study by Crowd DNA in 2011, half of respondents to the YouGov survey agree that a company’s positive involvement at a local level increases their national reputation.
Loving Local found that 93 per cent of respondents said they liked companies which got involved in the local community and 84 per cent they were more likely to buy brands that gave something back to the local community.
Local media (73 per cent) was cited as the best medium for making people feel part of their community, followed by the internet (22 per cent), TV (11 per cent), and national newspapers (five per cent).
Speaking about the CSR and the Local Community survey Nigel Hughes, board director at Havas PR, said: “Social media has a prominent place at the table but marketers run the risk of over-hyping it as a solution. Brands need to realise it’s not a one size fits all tool for reaching every demographic.
“The death of the local newspaper and impact of radio has clearly been exaggerated.”
