The Express Tribune uses data from top stories of 2018 to debunk myth about great divide between two platforms

CREATIVE: IBRAHIM YAHYA

CREATIVE: IBRAHIM YAHYA

In the first few days of December, Pew Research Center in United States released sweeping statistics detailing the reading habits of people in the North American nation. According to a study tracking the annual news consumption of citizens, social media had outpaced the print medium as the main news source of research respondents for the first time since records started being kept.Although the story did not get as much traction in the public sphere as the outlined results seemed to merit, the trends highlighted by the Washington-based non-partisan think tank were indicative of the future of news publications in the world at large.Conventional wisdom dictates that ever since the digital age was ushered in, with ease of access to internet technology and cheap, mass-produced electronic devices, print has been losing appeal with the public. However, conflicting reports routinely emerge which challenge this point of view.The digital versus print debate can also be widened by looking through the lens of class, gender, and ethnicity. In Pakistan, for example, a large number of people still cannot read and write, and with online platforms, find it easier to explore news content which is free and more interactive.Several studies also contend that digital publishing has introduced the modern, urban lifestyle to women of all backgrounds, thereby playing a small, but decisive role in expanding their otherwise limited hori