Seismic Shift in the Publishing Industry

Recent trends in the information publishing industry are not pretty—at least for workers in traditional publishing establishments. In the past four years, the book, magazine, and newspaper industries have shed a combined total of 104,000 jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Meanwhile, jobs in internet publishing have increased by nearly the same amount...

Employment in the publishing industry, 2016 and 2020

	2nd quarter 2020	1st quarter 2016	numerical change	percent change
Book	51,450	61,919	-10,469	-16.9%
Periodical	72,648	97,212	-24,564	-25.3%
Newspaper	111,615	180,313	-68,698	-38.1%
Internet	289,794	195,714	94,080	48.1%

Today, the 55 percent majority of publishing jobs are in internet publishing, up from just 37 percent in 2016.

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Internet Publishing Employment Up 48 Percent, First Quarter 2016 to Second Quarter 2020

Young Adults Are Less Likely to Read Books

Now that we're spending a lot more time at home, we're sure to be reading more books. Right? Maybe not. While the overall percentage of Americans aged 18 or older who read a book (not required for school or work) in the past 12 months has changed little over the past decade, significant changes are occurring by age group. Book reading among young and middle-aged adults has declined, while reading has increased among older people.

The 55 percent majority of adults read a book in 2017, according to the Survey of Public Participation in the Arts, which is sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts. The 55 percent includes anyone who read a print, digital, or audio book. The figure was identical in 2012 and nearly identical (54 percent) in 2008. But there have been changes by age group. Take a look...

Percent who read a book in the past year by age

	18 to 34	35 to 64	65-plus
2017	50.5%	52.5%	56.6%
2012	53.6	54.2	57.2
2008	52.7	56.1	51.2
2002	56.0	59.2	49.4
1992	62.6	63.6	49.6

A big drop in book reading has occurred among younger adults. The percentage of 18-to-34-year-olds who read a book in the past year fell from 63 percent in 1992 to 53 percent in 2008—a 10 percentage point decline during an era when the internet and smartphones became a thing. The decline in book reading is similar, although slightly delayed, among the middle-aged. The opposite trend can be seen among people aged 65 or older, with the percentage who read a book in the past year rising substantially between 2008 and 2012. Why the rise? The highly-educated baby-boom generation began to fill the 65-plus age group, and the college educated are much more likely than those with less education to read books.

Source: National Endowment for the Arts, How Do We Read? Let's Count the Ways

How Many Books Do You Read in a Year?

If you read at least one book in the past year, you rank among the majority of Americans. According to a 2017 survey by the National Endowment for the Arts, 53 percent of American adults read at least one book in the past 12 months—excluding those required for work or school. The median number of books read in a year's time is a modest 4.8, and the average 11.4. Still, the numbers add up. Americans read 1.4 billion books in 2017.

Women are more likely than men to have read a book in the past 12 months (61 versus 44 percent). By age, readership is as low as 47 percent among 18-to-24-year-olds, but is 50 percent or higher in all older age groups. The figure peaks at 57 percent among 65-to-74-year-olds. Not surprisingly, reading books increases with education...

Percent who read a book during past 12 months
High school graduate only: 40%
Some college/associate degree: 55%
College graduate: 68%
Graduate school: 79%

Twenty-three percent of adults used an electronic device, such as an e-reader or tablet computer, to read a book in the past year. Sixteen percent listened to an audiobook.

Source: National Endowment for the Arts, U.S. Patterns of Arts Participation: A Full Report from the 2017 Survey of Public Participation in the Arts

Coal Miners Aren't the Only Ones Whose Jobs Are Disappearing

In just 10 years, the number of bookstores in the United States fell from 12,558 to 7,548—a 40 percent decline, according to the Census Bureau's County Business Patterns. The number of book publishers fell 23 percent, and libraries were down 16 percent.

Number of bookstores
2016:    7,548
2006:  12,558

Number of book publishers
2016: 2,574
2006: 3,335

Number of libraries
2016: 2,223
2006: 2,650

Employment in these three types of establishments fell 32 percent between 2006 and 2016—from 267,210 to 181,700. The 86,000 jobs lost in the book industry greatly exceeded the loss of 30,200 coal mining jobs during the same time period.

Source: Census Bureau, World Book and Copyright Day: April 23, 2019

74% Read a Book in the Past Year

Nearly three out of four Americans aged 18 or older have read a book in the past year, according to a 2018 Pew Research Center survey. Print is the most popular format by far, and the percentage who have read a print book has not changed much in the past six years despite competition from digital books.

Percent who read a book in past year by format
Print: 67%
E-book: 26%
Audiobook: 18%

Among those who have read a book in the past year, 53 percent have read only print books, 9 percent have read only digital books (a category that includes e-books and audiobooks), and the remaining 39 percent have read both print and digital books.

Source: Pew Research Center, Nearly One-in-Five Americans Now Listen to Audiobooks

Reading Books in 2016

Average household spending on books plummeted between 2010 and 2015, falling 41 percent after adjusting for inflation. But don't despair—reading books remains hugely popular, according to a Pew Research Center survey.  Fully 73 percent of Americans aged 18 or older read a book in the past year. Among all Americans (including nonreaders), the median number of books read in the past year is 4, and the average is 12.

Percent who read a book in the past 12 months
Any book: 73%
Print book: 65%
E-book: 28%
Audio book: 14%

Although young adults have a reputation for all things electronic, in fact they are far more likely to read a print book than an e-book. Among 18-to-29-year-olds, 72 percent read a print book in the past year and 35 percent read an e-book. Among people aged 65 or older, the figures are 61 and 19 percent, respectively.

Source: Pew Research Center, Book Reading 2016

Fewer Are Reading Print Books

Book reading is down slightly from what it used to be, reports Pew Research Center, with print books accounting for all of the decline. Seventy-two percent of adults say they read at least one book in the past 12 months, according to Pew's 2015 survey, down from 79 percent in 2011. The percentage who read a book in print fell from 71 to 63 percent during those years. The percentage who read an e-book climbed from 17 to 27 percent, and audio book reading was about the same in both years at 11 to 12 percent.

Young adults are most likely to have read any book in the past 12 months. In the 2015 survey, fully 80 percent of 18-to-29-year-olds say they read a book in the past year compared with 71 percent of 30-to-49-year-olds and 68 to 69 percent of people aged 50 or older. Young adults are ahead of the other age groups in reading both print and e-books...

Read a print book (or e-book) in the past 12 months
Total adults: 63% (27%)
Aged 18 to 29: 69% (34%)
Aged 30 to 49: 63% (33%)
Aged 50 to 64: 59% (23%)
Aged 65-plus: 61% (15%)

Source: Pew Research Center, Slightly Fewer Americans Are Reading Print Books, New Survey Finds

Spending on Books Plunges

In 2013, the average household spent almost as much on digital book readers ($30.18) as it did on books ($32.53). Since 2000, average household spending on books has fallen 58 percent, after adjusting for inflation—almost as steep a decline as the 65 percent plunge in spending on newspaper and magazine subscriptions.

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Expenditure Survey

Book Store Jobs, 2004 and 2014

The number of Americans employed at book stores and news dealers fell 41 percent between 2004 and 2014, from 151,100 to 89,600—a loss of more than 60,000 jobs.

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Spending and Employment related to Books and other Reading Materials

Spending on Reading Material

The average household spent $109 on reading material in 2012, up slightly from the $105 spent in 2010 after adjusting for inflation. What contributed to this boost in spending on reading material after the steep 46 percent decline between 2000 and 2010? Digital book readers, according to a Demo Memo analysis of unpublished detailed spending data from the federal government's Consumer Expenditure Survey.

During an average quarter of 2012, nearly 2 percent of households bought a digital book reader. While that doesn't sound like much, it was a higher rate of purchasing than for personal digital audio players (such as iPods) and nearly as high a rate as for online gaming services. The result was a boost in spending on the overall reading category despite ongoing declines in spending on books, newspapers, and magazines.

The introduction of digital book readers explains why average household spending on reading material grew especially strongly among householders under age 55 during the 2010-to-2012 time period...

Percent change in average household spending on reading material, 2010-12 (in 2012 dollars)
Under age 25: 7.2%
Aged 25 to 34: 12.1%
Aged 35 to 44: 10.4%
Aged 45 to 54: 7.8%
Aged 55 to 64: 0.3%
Aged 65-plus: -4.4%

Now that so many more Americans own digital book readers, perhaps spending on books will begin to grow in the years ahead.

The Persistence of Books

Most Americans aged 18 or older are book readers. The 54.5 percent who read a book in 2012 was almost identical to the 54.3 percent who read a book in 2008, according to surveys of arts participation by the National Endowment for the Arts.

Age of book readers: The percentage of adults who read a book in 2012 varied little by age and exceeded 50 percent in every age group.

Gender of book readers: Books are more popular among women (64%) than men (45%).

Educational attainment of book readers: The biggest variation in book reading occurs by education, with the percentage who read a book in 2012 rising from 41 percent among high school graduates to 74 percent among college graduates and peaking at 82 percent among those who went to graduate school.

Source: National Endowment for the Arts, How a Nation Engages with Art

E-Books vs. Print Books

Three out of four Americans aged 16 or older read a book in the past 12 months, according to a Pew Internet and American Life survey. The figure peaks at 90 percent among 16-to-17-year-olds (many of whom are required to read books in high school) and bottoms out at 67 percent among people aged 65 or older.

Print still rules the book world, even in the younger age groups. Among 18-to-24-year-old book readers, 93 percent read a print book and 31 percent read an e-book in the past year. E-books are most popular among 30-to-49-year-old book readers, 41 percent having read an e-book and 85 percent a print book in the past year.

Source: Pew Internet and American Life Project, Younger Americans' Library Habits and Expectations