Unless you’re one of the rare few who is printing each edition of the Gulf South Index (if so, please let us know), you’re probably digesting this information through a screen. Our devices are our gateway to news, shopping, sports, entertainment and just about everything else.
Information Overload (Still)
Our phones put the world in our pockets. This morning, I was listening to a podcast (on my phone) while walking our awesome dog, Farley. That podcaster talked about how our access to global news pushes us toward a gloomier world view. My paraphrased summary of his quote was “local news gives you high school sports scores. National news gives you political news. Global news gives us stories of genocide and war.”
His point was that digital access through our devices exposes us to more information that generations before us did not have. Every screen we see today – from our work desktops to the digital billboards on the interstate, feeds us a constant stream of information. That’s not necessarily good.
Too Much of A Good Thing: According to Nielsen, 87% of viewers still tune in to traditional television – a surprisingly high number. In fact, of the nine main options Nielsen tracks, all but radio and draw in more than half of the country.
Streaming Saturation In the 2025 Gulf South Index by The Ehrhardt Group and Causeway Solutions, we polled the amount of national and Gulf South respondents who are subscribed to a different streaming sites. Seven of the 13 streaming options we presented saw 20% or more of the Gulf South subscribed or shared a subscription in both demographics[TH1] : Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBO Max, Paramount+, Disney+ and Peacock. We’re willing to pay (and pay a lot) to access all the media we crave, and there’s lots of it.
***
Misinformation on the March
And if entertainment options feel endless, the news cycle is even more relentless. Breaking news updates hit our phones every minute, putting us all on the frontlines all of the time.
Cashing in on Negativity: Ever clicked on a terrifying headline only to find the story far less dramatic? Or worse, shared the headline without reading further? Negativity in the news is hardly novel, and not surprising with how it sells. But according to a 2022 BigThink and PLos ONE report, news headlines have become significantly more negative over the past two decades, increasingly driven by anger, disgust and fear while joy fades.
While media may know these stories sell, it also damages trust, hurts our psyches, and spreads misinformation, as misleading (often negative) headlines spread though online communities, often outpacing the truth. See above re: global news reporting on genocides and war.
Small-screen news is the dominant method for most of us, according to Pew Research Center. 86% of Americans get their news from their smartphones, computers or tablets at least sometimes, with 56% saying they do so often. While people may still tune in to their TVs too, less are often reading printed news (7%) or listening to the radio (11%).
***
Trust is on Trial
Tuning out feels impossible. The news shapes our daily lives, and staying informed does matter. How do we balance a need for knowledge with the mental drain of constant updates? Unfortunately, the answer for many: skepticism.
Misleading headlines, the spread of fake news and overwhelming amounts of content can all contribute to these feelings. When there’s so much being said all the time, and so much of it can’t be taken for fact – sometimes it’s easier to just shut it off.
Waning Confidence: The news media isn’t the only industry struggling from a lack of confidence in the American public. But according to Gallup, newspapers and televisions have seen some of the biggest fall-offs. Around half of the U.S. has very little or no trust in these traditional media sources – beaten only by Congress. A timely stat as the federal government is shutdown, as this issue is written.
The silver lining? Going small. In that same Gallup poll, small businesses see the highest confidence levels at 68%. In the Gulf South Index, we’ve seen local news receiving the highest level of trust from all of our respondents, year after year. In 2025, that number stands at 35% trusting local news a great deal/quite a lot in the Gulf South, and 40% nationally. The next closest is our family and friends at 31% for both groups.
***
The world is overwhelming, the news is unrelenting, often negative. Unfortunately, this doesn’t seem to be going anywhere anytime soon. We need to find an information balance, test things that don’t seem correct and make smart, informed decisions about the people we trust, the news we consume and the stories we share.
Unless you’re one of the rare few who is printing each edition of the Gulf South Index (if so, please let us know), you’re probably digesting this information through a screen. Our devices are our gateway to news, shopping, sports, entertainment and just about everything else.
Information Overload (Still)
Our phones put the world in our pockets. This morning, I was listening to a podcast (on my phone) while walking our awesome dog, Farley. That podcaster talked about how our access to global news pushes us toward a gloomier world view. My paraphrased summary of his quote was “local news gives you high school sports scores. National news gives you political news. Global news gives us stories of genocide and war.”
His point was that digital access through our devices exposes us to more information that generations before us did not have. Every screen we see today – from our work desktops to the digital billboards on the interstate, feeds us a constant stream of information. That’s not necessarily good.
Too Much of A Good Thing: According to Nielsen, 87% of viewers still tune in to traditional television – a surprisingly high number. In fact, of the nine main options Nielsen tracks, all but radio and draw in more than half of the country.
Streaming Saturation In the 2025 Gulf South Index by The Ehrhardt Group and Causeway Solutions, we polled the amount of national and Gulf South respondents who are subscribed to a different streaming sites. Seven of the 13 streaming options we presented saw 20% or more of the Gulf South subscribed or shared a subscription in both demographics[TH1] : Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBO Max, Paramount+, Disney+ and Peacock. We’re willing to pay (and pay a lot) to access all the media we crave, and there’s lots of it.
***
Misinformation on the March
And if entertainment options feel endless, the news cycle is even more relentless. Breaking news updates hit our phones every minute, putting us all on the frontlines all of the time.
Cashing in on Negativity: Ever clicked on a terrifying headline only to find the story far less dramatic? Or worse, shared the headline without reading further? Negativity in the news is hardly novel, and not surprising with how it sells. But according to a 2022 BigThink and PLos ONE report, news headlines have become significantly more negative over the past two decades, increasingly driven by anger, disgust and fear while joy fades.
While media may know these stories sell, it also damages trust, hurts our psyches, and spreads misinformation, as misleading (often negative) headlines spread though online communities, often outpacing the truth. See above re: global news reporting on genocides and war.
Small-screen news is the dominant method for most of us, according to Pew Research Center. 86% of Americans get their news from their smartphones, computers or tablets at least sometimes, with 56% saying they do so often. While people may still tune in to their TVs too, less are often reading printed news (7%) or listening to the radio (11%).
***
Trust is on Trial
Tuning out feels impossible. The news shapes our daily lives, and staying informed does matter. How do we balance a need for knowledge with the mental drain of constant updates? Unfortunately, the answer for many: skepticism.
Misleading headlines, the spread of fake news and overwhelming amounts of content can all contribute to these feelings. When there’s so much being said all the time, and so much of it can’t be taken for fact – sometimes it’s easier to just shut it off.
Waning Confidence: The news media isn’t the only industry struggling from a lack of confidence in the American public. But according to Gallup, newspapers and televisions have seen some of the biggest fall-offs. Around half of the U.S. has very little or no trust in these traditional media sources – beaten only by Congress. A timely stat as the federal government is shutdown, as this issue is written.
The silver lining? Going small. In that same Gallup poll, small businesses see the highest confidence levels at 68%. In the Gulf South Index, we’ve seen local news receiving the highest level of trust from all of our respondents, year after year. In 2025, that number stands at 35% trusting local news a great deal/quite a lot in the Gulf South, and 40% nationally. The next closest is our family and friends at 31% for both groups.
***
The world is overwhelming, the news is unrelenting, often negative. Unfortunately, this doesn’t seem to be going anywhere anytime soon. We need to find an information balance, test things that don’t seem correct and make smart, informed decisions about the people we trust, the news we consume and the stories we share.
Until next time,
President
The Ehrhardt Group