This Study Suggests Consumers Are ‘Tuning Out’ Linear Radio, TV

Is it true, or is it a report littered with misunderstandings about the continued resilience of broadcast radio and TV? That’s what some industry leaders may question after digesting the findings of a report released Tuesday from Attest, which used an online survey to gather its results.

The five-minute survey asks general questions, such as how long one spends watching TV on an average day — the first question in the query.

With customers including Netflix, Molson Coors, Unilever and JCDecaux, New York-headquartered Attest positions itself as a research company allowing these companies to make informed decisions on how to grow their audience.

Could its sixth annual US Media Consumption Report be produced for the benefit of Netflix? While Attest says it is offering “insights into how Americans’ habits across television, audio, news, and social media continue to evolve,” the results suggest they are working hard to put their customers in a ROI avenue with few obstacles.

When examining television viewing times, Attest notes that they are continuing their “rapid descent,” with the percentage of consumers watching three or more hours of TV of any type per day declining to 56% in 2025, down from 61% in 2024 and 63% the year before, based on Attest’s previous reports.

Attest also spreads the notion that “the most committed TV watchers” are old enough to be AARP cardholders. Two-thirds of respondents aged 50-67 watch at least three hours per day.

If there’s any particularly glum news for broadcast TV, it is this: Live TV has borne the brunt of the slowdown, with 28% of consumers saying they generally don’t watch any on an average day. That’s up from 24% last year, and 20% in 2023. This trend is driven by young consumers: some 41% of respondents under 30 typically don’t watch live TV (versus 27% of 31-49s and 20% of over 50s). Those Under 30 who do watch live TV are most likely to say they watch it for between 30 minutes to one hour per day.

There’s more: Viewing times for streaming services have also decreased, with a four-point decline in people watching for three or more hours, and a corresponding increase in 1-2 hour viewing sessions.

Meanwhile, Attest finds that one-third of respondents now stream TV for 1-2 hours per day. Under 30s watch the most, with one quarter typically viewing streamed TV for 1-2 hours and another quarter chalking up 3-4 hours per day.

What does Attest have to say about Radio? Consumption is in “steady decline.”

• The number of daily listeners now sits at 31%, having fallen from 37% in 2023, while the percentage of those who listen a few times a week has also been gradually trailing off (currently 23%).

• The number of Americans who say they never listen to the radio has simultaneously crept up from 11% in 2023 to 16% today.

Data in the Attest report come from a nationally representative survey of 2,000 U.S. consumers aged 18-67. The media consumption tracker survey is conducted annually on the Attest platform during March and April 2025.