“balloon boy” news was read on Internet sites

40% of viewers read the “balloon boy” news on Internet sites --

Flemington, NJ, October 19, 2009 – A new media study among 303 viewers of a news clip featuring the “balloon boy” story and the timeline of events revealed that half of viewers (51%) reported that the media coverage surrounding the story was overdone.

The study was conducted by HCD Research using its MediaCurves.com® website during October 16-18 to obtain viewers’ perceptions of the recent “balloon boy” story that has been prevalent in the news. To view interest curves and detailed results go to: www.mediacurves.com.

The majority of viewers (75%) reported that they saw the news story on television. Almost half of respondents (40%) indicate that the received the news through Internet news sites.

Among the findings:

Please indicate where you saw coverage, posts, news, updates, etc. related to this specific story. Select all that apply.
Total
Television/news 75%
News site 40%
Email 8%
Social media site 14%
Phone call, text, etc. 2%
Word of moth 15%
Newspaper/magazine 6%
Other 7%
The media coverage surrounding this story of the ‘balloon boy’ is:
Total
Too much, overdone 51%
The right amount, appropriate 49%
Not enough 1%
While viewing the video, participants indicated their levels of interest by moving their mouse from left to right on a continuum. The responses were recorded in quarter-second intervals and reported in the form of curves. The participants were also asked to respond to post-viewing questions.

Editors/Reporters: For more information on the study, or to speak with Glenn Kessler, president and CEO, HCD Research, please contact Vince McGourty, HCD Research, at (908) 483-9121 or (vince.mcgourty@hcdi.net). You can also receive updates from MediaCurves.com by following us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/mediacurves and Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Flemington-NJ/MediaCurves/86691908820

HCD Research is a marketing and communications research company headquartered in Flemington, NJ. The company's services include traditional and web-based research. For additional information on HCD Research, access the company’s web site at www.hcdi.net or call HCD Research at 908-788-9393 MediaCurves.com® (www.mediacurves.com) is a media measurement website that provides the media and general public with a venue to view Americans’ perceptions of popular and controversial media events and advertisements. For more information on mediacurves.com, please contact Barbara Taylor, director, MediaCurves.com, at (908) 483-9146 or (barbara.taylor@hcdi.net).

ENDS

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