Health providers frequently probe patients’ recall of current and/or remote news items to determine the extent of memory loss. Impaired memory for transient events (i.e., in the news for a circumscribed time) may provide information regarding the onset of cognitive impairment. We utilized the Transient News Events Test (TNET) to explore how memory changes over time in older adults with cognitive impairment (CI) and non-cognitively impaired (NCI) individuals. We hypothesized that CI individuals would demonstrate reduced memory for transient events. We investigated the role of semantic and episodic memory on TNET performance.

Participants completed the TNET as part a comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation. Analyses included t tests to evaluate group differences for TNET performance, and correlations between TNET and neuropsychological measures, including episodic and semantic memory tests.

NCI adults demonstrated better memory than CI participants for TNET items. The NCI and CI groups did not differ regarding memory for remote items; however, CI participants had worse memory for recent items. There was a significant association between TNET performance and capacity for episodic and semantic memory in people with CI. In the NCI group, the TNET was associated only with episodic memory.

Findings support the use of news events to assess remote memories in older adults. Novel remote memory measures broaden the scope of memory assessment far beyond what is feasible within traditional neuropsychological assessment and provide insight into the onset of memory changes. Results enhance understanding of memory decline in older adults with cognitive impairment.