Post-Trump news traffic plunges as Americans lose interest in politics

Around half the US may feel pleased President Trump has been replaced in office, but the change could be less popular with major news providers, new data shows.

Without the unpredictability of politics à la Trump, it seems US audiences are re-orienting their attention, Axios reports.

The details

• Almost all major news sites saw traffic decline in February, following the dramatic events in January, which included the storming of the Capitol and the new president’s inauguration. Many sites reportedly saw traffic dip by more than 20%.
• Traffic to politics content fell most, down 28%, and interest in the presidency, specifically, has also declined steeply during Biden’s time in office – there were three times as many stories written about Trump in February 2017 than about President Biden last month.
• The result is that other stories, such as those about the “meme stock” GameStop, and content about COVID vaccines, have gained more traction than they would have done while Trump was still in office.

Key takeaway

Trump may no longer be president, but his audience pulling power is still alive and well – his speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) commanded an audience of almost seven million, not far off that for the Golden Globes later the same evening.

^{[Image: Markus Spiske on Unsplash]}