Media audiences increasingly relying on digital and social platforms for news – latest Reuters Institute Digital News Report reveals.
Traditional news media are losing ground to platforms such as TikTok – particularly among younger audiences - according to a key finding in the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism’s (RISJ) latest Digital News Report.
Released today, the report – in its 12th edition – highlights that the primary way of audiences getting news has shifted from direct access to social media.
It also shows that interest and trust in news is falling in many countries and the economic downturn has increased pressure on news business models.
The research is based on the results of a survey conducted in 46 global markets – including the UK, US, Germany, France, India, Nigeria, Brazil and The Philippines – during January and February 2023, with a total sample size of 93,896 adults and around 2,000 per market
Younger generations increasingly eschew direct discovery for all but the most appealing brands.
They have little interest in many conventional news offers oriented towards older generations’ habits, interests, and values, and instead embrace the more personality-based, participatory, and personalised options offered by social media, often looking beyond legacy platforms to new entrants (many of whom drive few referrals to media organisations and do not prioritise news).
Other key findings include:
- On average four in ten of the research’s total sample say they trust news most of the time. Finland remains the country with the highest levels of overall trust (69%), while Greece (19%) has the lowest.
- Politicians in countries such as the US, Mexico and the Philippines have become the leading source of criticism of journalists.
- The majority of the public is cynical of algorithms determining what news they see via search engines, social media and other platforms.
- Across markets, well over half (56%) worry about identifying the difference between what new is real and fake on the internet – up two percentage points on last year.
- Fewer people are participating in online news than in the recent past, despite hopes the internet could widen democratic debate.
- Public media brands remain among those with the with the highest levels of trust in many Northern European countries, but reach has been declining with younger audiences.
- News podcasting continues to resonate with educated and younger audiences, but remains a minority activity overall.
The Digital News Report was written by Nic Newman, Lead Author, RISJ Senior Research Associate and a consultant on digital media; Dr Richard Fletcher, RISJ Director of Research; Dr Kirsten Eddy, RISJ Research Fellow; Dr Craig T Robertson, RISJ Research Fellow; and Professor Rasmus Kleis Nielsen.
The Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism is dedicated to exploring the future of journalism worldwide.
