The Pew Research Center released its annual State of the News Media today, marking 2011 the beginning of a new digital era. A compilation of research stemming from all media forms and all audiences, the report paints a predictable picture of the present (and future) state of news media. The report comes along with a fun interactive bit that breaks down the top sources and themes of last year's news consumption.

Newspapers: Dippin it Low
  • Pew Research Center
  • Newspapers: Dippin' it Low

The findings:

— News websites still trump social media news links. However juicy Twitter blurbs or Facebook's "social reader" app headlines may be, only 9 percent of American news consumers chose to rely on these sources for news. But, the number of folks who use search programs to find news is very close to those who actually go to a news site to get informed.

— Most media sources saw audience growth last year...with the exception of print publications. What did you expect? The leading source: News websites, with a 17 percent growth in readership. Newspapers lost 4 percent of fans.

— Thanks to steep drops in ad revenue, the Pew predicts that more than 100 daily newspapers will create an online subscription model (a la New York Times). It's not worth getting grumpy over anymore.

— Paranoia is running strong through the veins of your average news consumer, specifically when faced with online privacy. Targeting advertising is creepy, but news sites thrive off of it. What to do?