Exclusive insights into the media habits of Washington, D.C.’s most influential decisionmakers driving policy, perception and power.
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If New York is the city that never sleeps, Washington, D.C., is the city that never stops reading, watching and listening. For better or worse, D.C. pulsates with the 24-hour news cycle – expanding and contracting with the latest soundbite or post.
The Beltway has changed. So has the way Washingtonians consume news. A new wave of power players is reshaping the media landscape. Today’s insiders—on both sides of the aisle—are engaging with more content, across more platforms, than ever before. But which voices are breaking through the noise? And are they as fragmented as we might think?
The District Power Circle is your exclusive look at the media habits of policy influencers shaping the new Washington, and the insights you need to stay ahead of the conversation.
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Report Highlights
What They're Reading
read national newspapers,​
76%
including Washington Post, New York Times and Wall Street Journal at least 3–4 times weekly, with print newspapers showing stronger partisan balance than their digital counterparts.​
41%
read newsletters 3 days a week or more
with Republicans consuming most newsletters at a higher rates than Democrats.
What They're Watching
watch cable or broadcast TV news
73%
at least 3 times per week. CNN This Morning (27% R, 27% D) and State of the Union (32% R, 35% D) reach across partisan divides, unlike many other cable news programs.
73%
watch local news
at least 3 or 4 times a week.​
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What They're Listening To
consume podcasts 3+ times weekly,
43%
but haven't supplanted radio stations (64%), national newspapers (76%), or cable/broadcast news (74%) as a means of news consumption.​
Podcast audiences skew younger
but a few shows have audiences among 45+: The Daily (24%) and Pod Save America (23%) perform best.
What They're Engaging With
use social platforms
3+ times weekly
68%
evolving into a core channel, not just a supplement.​​​
Facebook reaches a high share of Beltway influencers,
while Twitter/X remains important despite trust concerns.
Certain outlets bridge the partisan gap
Want More Insights?
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What's Inside:
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Detailed charts and tables capturing what media Beltway influencers consume across news publications, cable and broadcast TV, social media, video streaming, radio, news apps, podcasts, newsletters, online blogging platforms and more.
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Breakouts across political affiliation, age and gender.
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Recommendations and media plans you can use now to reach Beltway influencers.
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Detailed crosstab data tables for every question in the survey.
Why We Made This
As organizations and their agency partners face a rapidly-evolving public affairs strategy, this one-of-a-kind report offers essential guidance for smarter media buying and more strategic media relations. ​
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Methodology: The survey was conducted online February 3-19, 2025 among N=300 Beltway influencers, with an oversample of N=50 Republican Beltway influencers. The survey was then weighted to ensure the partisan and demographic composition of the survey was balanced. Margin of error is ±5.7%. The “Beltway Influencer” audience consists of individuals who are professionally engaged in political and policy developments and follow political and policy developments very closely. They meet certain demographic criteria as well: registered voters residing in the Washington, D.C., Maryland, or Virginia areas, have a high level of education, and meet minimum financial income levels.
​Sable Strategy is a PR and strategic communications firm with experience traversing and navigating some of the toughest public affairs, issues management and corporate reputation terrains. Sable is a senior-level consultancy comprised of media relations experts and trainers, digital strategists, creative directors, advertising executives, producers and writers.​
​Certus Insights is an industry leader in providing actionable insights through surveys and focus groups for corporate, association, and nonprofit clients to: understand audiences; develop and test messages; understand perceptions on key issues; identify and address brand and reputational challenges; build effective communications campaigns; understand perceptions among members, employees, and stakeholders. Our differentiator: The combination of solid quantitative and qualitative methodologies along with practical, analytical depth.