The foundations for daily media use are laid at an early age. Among 4- to 13-year-olds, linear television and print products are the most popular.
These are the findings of the «Kinder Medien Monitor» 2021. By means of the study, five publishers – Egmont Ehapa Media, Gruner + Jahr, Panini Verlag, Edeka Media and Super RTL – provide a wealth of data on children’s media use. Based on responses from children and their parents, the study represents 7.47 million children in Germany between the ages of four and 13, according to the companies. It also focuses on reach for a total of 27 print magazines.
72 percent of children prefer print
The corona pandemic is influencing the media consumption of the youngest: Due to lockdown phases and homeschooling, the digital media competence of children has experienced a real boost from the parents’ point of view. Watching and listening, reading and chatting are firmly anchored in children’s everyday lives. According to the «Kinder Medien Monitor», television, media libraries, streaming services and magazines best promote the media skills of the youngest. According to parents’ opinions, magazines enjoy the greatest acceptance among their offspring – followed by TV programming.
Specifically, reading on paper is popular, so that 72 percent of children prefer books and magazines in classic form. Parents place a great deal of trust in printed products and see the greatest benefit for their children in print. What’s more, they are also involved in reading themselves: according to the survey, the magazines shown reach 5.8 million parents.
Learning from magazines
A remarkable 81 percent of parents of 4- to 13-year-olds claim that their child can learn something from magazines. 73 percent value magazines for inspiring their children’s imagination and creativity. And 72 percent of parents consider reading print magazines to be a meaningful activity. More than half of 6- to 9-year-olds and 86 percent of 10- to 13-year-olds even get to decide for themselves which books or magazines they actually want to devote themselves to.
They often appreciate the tactile pleasure of turning paper pages. For a long time now, 75 percent of children have been turning to classic books, magazines or comics several times a week. Just as many even keep magazines and spend reading time with other children.
Magazines often enjoy undivided attention from youngsters. Once they’re reading, 77 percent of children don’t listen to or watch other things on the side. Perhaps print reading also promotes better concentration – it’s probably easier to get distracted with electronic media.
Yours
Frank Baier,
Editor-in-Chief of “Bindereport”
This text is reproduced with kind permission of Müller Martini, you can read the original article first published here