The Project for Excellence in Journalism has released a major report today that provides a snapshot of issues involving participatory media in the United States. 

The report found daily attention on news is relatively high, but unsurprisingly not among young people, and Americans are using several platforms now in their news consumption. Indeed, 46% are using four to six platforms to get their news.

What will garner attention most is the emergence of the handheld device --- one-third (33% to be precise) said they use their handhelds to get some news. More than a quarter personalize home pages and 37% pa

The report determined science, religion and health are considered undercovered among Americans. State and local governments also appear so. Sports and business are considered well-covered, on the other hand.

The biggest reason people consume the news: To be able to talk about it.