NEW YORK (AP) \u2014 As a Democrat who immersed himself in political news during the presidential campaign, Ziad Aunallah has much in common with many Americans since the election. He\u2019s tuned out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPeople are mentally exhausted,\u201d said Aunallah, 45, of San Diego. \u201cEveryone knows what is coming and we are just taking some time off.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Television ratings \u2014 and now a new poll \u2014 clearly illustrate the phenomenon. About two-thirds of American adults say they have recently felt the need to limit media consumption about politics and government because of overload, according to the survey from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Smaller percentages of Americans are limiting their intake of news about overseas conflicts, the economy or climate change, the poll says. Politics stand out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Election news on CNN and MSNBC was taking up too much of Sam Gude\u2019s time before the election, said the 47-year-old electrician from Lincoln, Nebraska. \u201cThe last thing I want to watch right now is the interregnum,\u201d said Gude, a Democrat and no fan of President-elect Donald Trump<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The poll, conducted in early December, found that about 7 in 10 Democrats say they are stepping back from political news. The percentage isn\u2019t as high for Republicans, who have reason to celebrate Trump\u2019s victory. Still, about 6 in 10 Republicans say they\u2019ve felt the need to take some time off too, and the share for independents is similar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The differences are far starker for the TV networks that have been consumed by political news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After election night through Dec. 13, the prime-time viewership of MSNBC was an average of 620,000, down 54% from the pre-election audience this year, the Nielsen company said. For the same time comparison, CNN\u2019s average of 405,000 viewers was down 45%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At Fox News Channel, a favorite news network for Trump fans, the post-election average of 2.68 million viewers is up 13%, Nielsen said. Since the election, 72% of the people watching one of those three cable networks in the evening were watching Fox News, compared to 53% prior to election day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A post-election slump for fans of the losing candidate is not a new trend for networks that have become heavily identified for a partisan audience. MSNBC had similar issues after Trump was elected in 2016. Same for Fox in 2020, although that was complicated by anger<\/u><\/a>: many of its viewers were outraged then by the network\u2019s crucial election night call of Arizona for the Democratic presidential candidate, Joe Biden<\/u><\/a>, and sought alternatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n MSNBC had its own anger issues<\/u><\/a> after several \u201cMorning Joe\u201d viewers became upset that hosts Joe Scarborough<\/u><\/a> and Mika Brzezinski<\/u><\/a> visited Trump shortly after his victory last month. Yet while the show\u2019s ratings are down 35% since Election Day, that\u2019s a smaller drop than the network\u2019s prime-time ratings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n CNN points out that while it has been suffering in the television ratings, its streaming and digital ratings have been consistent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n MSNBC can take some solace in history. In previous years, network ratings bounce back<\/u><\/a> when the depression after an election loss lifts. When a new administration takes office, people who oppose it are frequently looking for a gathering place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019ll be tuning back in once the clown show starts,\u201d Aunallah said. \u201cYou have no choice. Whether or not you want to hear it, it\u2019s happening. If you care about your country, you have no choice but to pay attention.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n But the ride may not be smooth. MSNBC\u2019s slide is steeper than it was in 2016; and there\u2019s some question about whether Trump opponents will want to be as engaged as they were during his first term. People are also unplugging from cable television in rates that are only getting more rapid, although MSNBC believes it has bucked this trend eating away at audiences before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The poll indicates that Americans want less talk about politics from public figures in general. After an election season where endorsements from celebrities like Taylor Swift<\/u><\/a> made headlines, the survey found that Americans are more likely to disapprove than approve of celebrities, large companies and professional athletes speaking out about politics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Still, Gude is among those discovering other ways to get news to which he does want to pay attention, including on YouTube.<\/p>\n\n\n\n MSNBC is also in the middle of some corporate upheaval that raises questions about potential changes. Parent company Comcast<\/u><\/a> announced last month that the cable network is among some properties that will spin off<\/u><\/a> into a new company, which will give MSNBC new corporate leadership<\/u><\/a> and cut its ties to NBC News.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some of the Americans who have turned away from political news lately also had some advice for getting them engaged again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gude said, for example, that MSNBC will always have a hard-core audience of Trump haters. But if the network wants to expand its audience, \u201cthen you have to talk about issues, and you have to stop talking about Trump.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kathleen Kendrick, a 36-year-old sales rep from Grand Junction, Colorado, who\u2019s a registered independent voter, said she hears plenty of people loudly spouting off about their political opinions on the job. She wants more depth when she watches the news. Much of what she sees is one-sided and shallow, she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou get a story but only part of a story,\u201d Kendrick said. \u201cIt would be nice if you could get both sides, and more research.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Aunallah, similarly, is looking for more depth and variety. He\u2019s not interested \u201cin watching the angry man on the corner yelling at me anymore,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s kind of their own fault that I\u2019m not watching,\u201d he said. \u201cI felt they spent all this time talking about the election. They made it so much of their focus that when the main event ends, why would people want to keep watching?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\nPoll finds more Democrats than Republicans stepping away from news<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Will political interest rebound when Trump takes office?<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Advice for networks who want to see the viewers return<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n