Q. How frequently do you use technology platforms like Google and Facebook to search for, and read news articles?

• Half of adult Australians use social media platforms like Facebook and Google to search and read news on a daily basis (52%). A further 22% use social media weekly to access news.
• People aged 35-54 are the heaviest consumers of news through social media, with 64% using a platform on a daily basis.

Q. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is drafting code of conduct legislation to force technology platforms, like Google and Facebook, to pay media organisations for the news content they distribute.

In response Facebook has threatened to stop its users sharing news and Google has warned its free web search is at risk.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statements?

•  Around half of people agree that big technology companies like Google and Facebook have too much power (51%) and they should support Australian media rather than bullying the government (54%).
• People aged 18-34 were more sympathetic to social media platforms and had the lowest agreement that government is right to ask Google and Facebook to pay for news (36%), they have too much power (36%).
• 34% of daily social media users agree they would use the platform less frequently if it stopped offering news content.

Q. How much trust do you have in the following groups to protect your privacy?

Over half of people have no trust in Facebook (57%) or Twitter (55%) to protect their privacy. Just under half have no trust in the US government to protect their privacy (43%).

Very few people (13% or less) have a ‘lot of trust’ in the organisations listed to protect their privacy.

Just 41% of people have a lot/some trust in the Australian government to protect their privacy.

Those aged 18-24 (42%) and 25-34 (44%) were less likely to have no trust in Facebook. While those aged 35-44 (60%), 45-54 (66%), 55-64 (62%) and 65+ (63%) were more likely to have ‘no trust’.

The same theme was repeated for Twitter, with those aged 18-24 (31%) and 25-34 (45%) being less likely than those aged 35-44 (58%), 45-54 (63%), 55-64 (64%) and 65+ (63%) to have ‘no trust’.

Liberal/National voters were more likely to have a lot/some trust in the Australian government to protect their privacy (54%). Labor (33%) voters were less likely to have a lot/some trust in the Australian Government to protect their privacy.

Q. How often do you use the following online media –

52% say they use Google at least daily and 46% use Facebook at least daily.

Google is used more by – aged 18-24 (74% daily), aged 25-34 (63%), Greens voters (65%), income $1,600+ pw (61%).

Facebook is used more by – women (53% daily), aged 18-24 (82%), aged 25-34 (60%), Greens voters (55%).

Newspaper websites are used more by – aged 25-34 (28% daily), Lib/Nat voters (25%), income $1,600+ pw (30%).

Other news websites are used more by – men (42% at least several times a week), aged 25-34 (48%)

Blogs are used more by – aged 25-34 (38% at least once a week), Greens voters (45%), income $1,600+ pw (28%).

Campaign websites are used more by – aged 25-34 (31% at least once a week), Greens voters (40%).

Twitter is used more by – aged 18-24 (24% at least once a week), aged 25-34 (29%), Greens voters (26%).

Q. How important are the following online media to you personally for news and information?

Google is the most important source of news and information (52% very/quite important). Although Facebook tends to be used more frequently, it is not as important as news websites for news and information.

Google is more important to – aged 18-24 (71% very/quite important), aged 25-34 (59%) and incomes over $1,600 pw (57%).

Newspaper websites are more important to – aged 25-34 (54% very/quite important) and incomes over $1,000 pw (51%).

Other news websites are more important to – aged 25-34 (50% very/quite important).

Facebook is more important to – aged 18-24 (51% very/quite important) and aged 25-34 (43%).

Websites about social and political campaigns are more important to – aged 18-24 (23% very/quite important), aged 25-34 (25%) and Greens voters (33%).

Blogs are more important to – aged 18-24 (19% very/quite important), aged 25-34 (21%) and Greens voters (23%).

Twitter is more important to – aged 18-24 (17% very/quite important) and aged 25-34 (20%).

Stuart Washington says technology is transforming journalism but just how our future media will look is still unknown.

The massive cuts to Fairfax and News Limited is part of the worldwide trend pitting newspapers against online media.

But what will bloggers and twitterers “link” to if traditional media is decimated? Who will fund investigative journalism? And will opinion be reduced to the “comments” section of blogs where extreme views and abuse proliferate?

International digital businesses like Google, Apple and Facebook are radically changing (and profiting) from the new media landscape yet pay minimal tax rates. Google paid just $74,000 in taxes in Australia last year despite $1 billion in revenue, while traditional media companies are struggling to stay afloat as their advertising clients drift to the cheaper and trackable world of online.

Fairfax journalist Stuart Washington tells 3Q his concerns about the brave new digital world.