Over the last seven days, Exit News has conducted a survey of its readers regarding the content on the site and what we can do to improve. Here are the results!
Reading Exit News
Most Exit News readers view Exit several times a day. This accounted for 48.6% of our readers. 19.6% read once a day, 25.7% read several times a week. Only nine respondents said they read rarely.
The most popular time of day to check in and read the news is throughout the day with almost ¾ of respondents checking regularly. A small percentage are more likely to check in the morning, with around 9% reading in the evening.
In terms of accessing the site, 48.6% do so via our Facebook page. 21.6% do so directly via the website, and 19% through WhatsApp. Twitter was the least used method, accounting for just 8.8%.
Out of those surveyed, Exit News is the primary source of news in English in Albania for 78% of respondents.
Content
When asked if the balance of topics on Exit News was varied enough, the responses were mixed. Around 50% said the balance is fine as it is, while a similar amount said more variety was needed. Several responses noted that it was heavy on politics, while for others, this was a good thing.
We have deduced from the comments that it would be preferable to increase content focussing on non-political news, rather than decreasing the amount of politics.
“I would prefer more variety in political reporting. It is heavily against the current government and I don’t feel like I get the whole picture.”
“Some more topics of general interests such as culture, history, or entertainment would be welcomed.”
“The balance is good and I don’t want more variety. It’s not about variety, but keeping the quality.”
The topics that interest you the most are:
- Politics 69.6%
- Rule of Law/ Justice 53.4%
- Human Rights 52%
- Crime and Corruption 52%
- Culture 48.6%
- Western Balkans 48%
- EU 45.3%
- Democracy 45.3%
When asked for topics you would like to see more of on Exit News, you said that information on non-political civil society movements was of interest. As is economic news, and innovation and tech news. Another area of interest was women’s rights and feminist issues.
The topics you want to see more of were culture with 18.1%, Interviews with 12.3%, Rule of Law and Justice with 9.4%, and Environment and Human Rights both with 8.7%.
What you like and want to see more of
- You enjoyed our content on how to survive lockdown;
- You observed that there has been a “notable improvement in its reporting quality over the last year”;
- You want to see criticisms of other parties, not just the ruling party;
- You want more tech, art, music, news, culture, history, environment and entertainment;
- You want to see continued exposure of corruption because you think this is important;
- You want to see more coverage of areas outside Tirana;
- You want to see news that will impact Expats;
- You want to see more sources, statistics, quote and data in articles;
- You want to see more on women’s rights, animal rights, and related issues;
- You want to see commentaries and opinions from experts;
- You want to see more analysis and less opinion;
- You want to see the same stories reported with more politically neutral language.
What you want to see less of
- Partisan materials;
- Minute by minute news;
- Edi Rama;
- Politics;
- Statements and reactions from politicians;
- Opinion pieces;
- Opinions mixed in with reporting;
- Short 2 paragraph articles;
- Clickbait titles;
- Aggressive language in opinion pieces;
- Politically loaded language;
- Non-neutral language,
Credibility
An overwhelming 77.6% of you found Exit News credible all the time. 20.3% found it credible most of the time, and only three respondents said it wasn’t credible.
What can Exit News do to improve?
“News in English to be aligned with the Albanian version. Sometimes I want to share the English version with non-Albanian speakers but I don’t always find it.”
“I think this should be a neutral news page, not political.”
“Continue the good work.”
“Keep exposing political corruption.”
“Provide more variety including in-depth analysis.”
“I think that it is a process that doesn’t happen overnight but that comes with different views of different human resources that you have. For me, it’s perfect how it is.”
“Though I appreciate Exit as an alternative news source in English, many of the articles seem biased. Sometimes the POV is biased, sometimes there are opinions sprinkled in what are supposed to be subjective articles. More data, statistics, interviews, and quotations from sources would make it more credible.”
“Continue to divide facts from opinions.”
“The extreme position it takes on certain issues from time to time. I would rather appreciate bringing the facts (as you do in most of the cases) and let the reader reflect on them. I am not sure I want any media to try and lead my opinion on any issue. The only exception from this could be a well built editorial.”
“Less opinion pieces as sometimes the tone can be quite aggressive. Focus on proper analysis instead.”
“Not much- leading in the Albanian market quality wise.”
“Updating the English site at the same pace as the Albanian site.”
The Future
Almost 80% of you said you would, or might download an Exit News application on your phone. 62% didn’t want a newsletter but a quarter said receiving a roundup of news on a weekly basis would be good.
The types of multimedia you want to see on Exit News are:
- Video reporting (50.7%)
- Blogs/Columns from experts and individuals (46.3%)
- Podcasts (41.8%)
- Photo Reportage (39.6%)
Last Word
“Keep going like this, you are the best”
“Thankyou for your contribution”
“Thankyou for all the work that you do”
“Keep up the good work. Focus on topics that are important because of the impact they have on people’s lives not on perpetually boring and repetitive topics like political parties, their leaders and similar. Focus on everyday people’s lives issues like you have done for the environment, kindergartens, the national theatre, etc. Good luck.”
“This has to do with politics. With exit.al currently being an opposition voice, civil society activists and citizens are referring to the platform for more credible news. It would be very disappointing if exit would stop following this standard once today’s opposition party comes to power. What we need is independent media and not a party newspaper.”
“My high school students analyzed the site for reliability as they learned how to evaluate the credibility of sources. They found it moderately reliable, as some articles do not have a byline, and there is basically no information about the editorial board. They identified emotionally loaded words in many articles that suggested bias for or against different political parties. I do go to Exit for up to date and factual information, and I think that sometimes the portal undermines itself when reporting comes across as biased. It’s a very hard line to walk. I think you are all doing a great job, just a little more transparency would be good.”
“Excellent new source, best in the area by far, fair and transparent reporting, thank you all and keep up the excellent journalism.”
“Please try to filter your skepticism and opposition and moderate the rhetoric when reporting facts and issues. Be less harsh when reporting so that you can have a more friendly approach with the reader.”
“I like Exit News bc it allows me to have the other side of the story. I like you do this being engaged and true to principles in these difficult times. So thanks for providing objective news about Albania in English while others only brag about their own achievements. This is brave insightful journalism.”
Thankyou to all of those who took the time to provide feedback. We have met to discuss the responses and will be taking action on some of the comments and criticisms that have been given.
