Nature vs. Nurture. Some reporters are born testy, but some, one might argue, are shaped by the business they're in. A recent survey of 100 journalists by the Orlando, Fla.-
based firm Bennett & Co. found that more than a third work weekends and 38% routinely cover news from home. Moreover, 40% of respondents said they have less help than they did
last year, and 75% said their workloads have increased.
On a positive note, 70% of respondents said they rely on receiving information from PR firms/departments. And 42% said that PR practitioners are becoming more credible (vs.
only 10% in 1999).
(Bennett & Co., 407/425-6040, http://www.bennettandco.com)
Generation e. Wanna reach today's college students? Get wired or get bent. A Golin/Harris survey of 88 college students (in 88 different universities across the U.S.) found
that 92% of students averaged 30+ minutes on the Web daily, and 20% of respondents said they spend more than two hours per day online, not including email. Most surf the Web for
entertainment, and 18% said they turned to online news sites as their primary source for headline news. CNN.com, MSNBC.com and NYTimes.com topped the list of most trusted news
sites.
(Golin/Harris, Lohman, 312/729-4123)