Measuring Readers' Satisfaction with Online Newspaper Content: A Study of Daily Trust

As a result of advances in technology particularly new media via which information can be instantly disseminated, many newspapers are realizing they need to tailor their news-delivering techniques to be quicker and more accessible. Therefore, this study attempts to determine the extent to which online newspapers satisfy the readers’ need for information compared to their print counterparts. Many studies conducted revealed differences in content between print and online newspapers, but there is still a need to determine the level of readers’ satisfaction with the contents. The study employed a quantitative approach in which a descriptive survey method was used to gather and analyze the data. A structured questionnaire was used to gather data from the readers’ perspective. Also, a critical review of the literature was done to determine the readers’ satisfaction from other related studies conducted in different countries of the world. The questionnaire was administered to a randomly selected sample of 330 newspaper readers. The findings revealed a moderate (Mean=3.36) level of readers’ satisfaction with the contents of online newspapers. Further analysis of the findings revealed that the majority (mean=3.45) of the readers agreed that the contents of online newspapers satisfy their need for information. The majority (mean=3.39) of the readers like reading online newspapers more than their print counterparts, while the majority (mean=3.33) of the readers feel better informed by reading the online version of newspapers. The study concludes that online newspapers give certain values to the readers which their print counterparts do not.