Santa Clara County residents said the news closest to home matters most, but a new survey shows it’s also the hardest to find.
Residents ranked what’s most important in their neighborhood ahead of their city, the county, Bay Area, California, nation and world, according to a survey of 2,031 county adults — of which 52% reside in San Jose — conducted by polling firm Embold Research. Yet more than 40% of Santa Clara County residents said it’s difficult to find out what’s happening in their backyard. Only 23% said the same about national or world news. The research firm describes it as a proximity paradox.
“The things people care about getting information about the most are the hardest to get, and that’s the local stuff,” Andrea Everett, principal researcher at Embold Research, told San José Spotlight.
Everett said the pattern has surfaced in every market the firm has surveyed, including Marin and San Mateo counties, Chicago, Illinois and Tampa Bay, Florida. Comparison figures provided by Embold showed Santa Clara County residents rank among the least satisfied with the local information they found on topics ranging from public safety and local politics to housing and education…