Avoiding the News

This groundbreaking book explains why and how so many people consume little or no news despite unprecedented abundance and ease of access.

Benjamin Toff is assistant professor in the Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Minnesota.

Ruth Palmer is associate professor of communication and digital media at IE University in Madrid and Segovia, Spain.

Rasmus Kleis Nielsen is director of the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism and professor of political communication at the University of Oxford.

Amanda Ripley, Washington Post columnist:
A deep dive into the complicated reasons that people distrust the news. A must-read for any journalist who wants to serve the people, meaning all the people—not just their friends and colleagues.

Clara Jiménez Cruz, CEO of Maldita.es and chair of the European Fact-Checking Standards Network:
This book is a wide-ranging investigation of not only the quantitative data about news avoidance but also, most importantly, the sentiments of those who have opted out of quality journalism. If journalists want to regain these readers, then it is crucial that we understand them first. This book serves as an important first step.

Katherine Cramer, University of Wisconsin-Madison:
This is a beautifully written book that teaches us so much about the nature of our relationships to news by looking in closely at the lives and understandings of people who choose to avoid it.

Nick Couldry, London School of Economics and Political Science:
News avoiders are one of the most neglected topics in communications research, yet listening to and understanding them may be absolutely crucial for the health of democratic culture. This precisely grounded, sociologically rigorous, and searching three-country study sets completely new standards for pursuing this elusive topic.

Melissa Bell, publisher of Vox Media:
This is urgent, necessary reading for anyone in the business of news, for anyone who cares about the news, and for anyone who wants to ensure a future of fair access to knowledge and information for all. We ignore this meticulously researched and empathetically reported book at our own peril.