The emergence of new media technologies has redefined how people, particularly
the youth, are exposed to the news. Social networking sites (SNS), in particular,
have widely changed the manner in which news is consumed. SNS platforms have
emerged as news sources where people engage in several activities such as
sharing, commenting and discussing news with peers, acquaintances and family
members. Thus, drawing on the extended version of the motivational model, this
study attempts to determine contributing factors. Using a stratified random
sampling procedure, this study compiles a sample from leading higher education
institutions in a Sub-Saharan African country. The data are then analysed using a
structural equation modelling technique with SmartPLS software and the both the
validity and reliability indexes are reported. The findings suggest that students’
attitude towards news consumption (ATT) via SNS platforms is influenced directly
by perceived usefulness (PU), perceived enjoyment (PE) and subjective norms (SN)
and indirectly by PE and SN factors. In addition, PU and PE are positively predicted
by SN. Furthermore, ATT directly predicts SNS news consumption (SNC), while PU, PE
and SN indirectly contribute to SNC.