How People Get News in 2026 | Digital News Report 2026: Episode 1

Why It Matters

The shift to social, video and AI platforms reshapes how audiences consume news, forcing media firms to adapt distribution, monetization and trust‑building strategies or risk losing relevance.

Key Takeaways

• News interest drops 15 points over five years, now under half.
• Platformization: social media and video outrank news sites in 30 markets.
• Under‑24s: 52% get news mainly via social/video platforms.
• AI chatbots used for news by 10% weekly, up from 7%.
• Trust in news hits new low; AI and platforms trusted even less.

Summary

The Reuters Institute’s Digital News Report 2026, based on over 100,000 respondents across 48 markets, paints a stark picture of a news audience in flux. Interest in news has fallen by roughly 15 percentage points over the past five years, leaving fewer than half of respondents saying they follow current events. At the same time, the report highlights a deepening shift toward platformization, with social media and video networks now surpassing owned news websites in 30 of the surveyed markets. Key data points underscore the generational divide: 52% of people under 24 cite social or video platforms as their primary news source, a full 32 points ahead of traditional sites. AI‑driven news consumption is still niche but growing, with 10% of respondents using chatbots for news in the past week, up from 7% a year earlier. Trust remains a critical concern, hitting a new low globally, and confidence in AI‑powered platforms is even lower. The report offers vivid examples: markets such as Singapore, Taiwan and Japan already see platform dominance, while older audiences (55+) still cling to TV. News‑lover segments have shrunk to roughly a quarter of the audience, yet they remain highly engaged and loyal. News avoidance sits at 42% worldwide, unchanged from the previous year, reflecting broader anxiety and disillusionment. For news organizations, the findings signal an urgent need to rethink distribution strategies, invest in platform‑specific content, and rebuild credibility. Younger, tech‑savvy consumers are driving the migration to social and video channels, and AI tools present both an opportunity for personalized news delivery and a challenge for trust building.

Original Description

In this opening episode of our Digital News Report 2026 series, we explore the major trends around how people are consuming news around the world. We look at the dominance of platforms as a source of news, how people are using AI, declining trust and interest in news, the role of news influencers, subscription trends and much more.

Discussion points:

1:28 Platformisation

7:30 AI chatbots for news

10:38 Interest in news

14:26 Trust in news

19:47 Coverage of migration, Gaza, climate

23:27 News influencers

25:25 Paying for news

30:01 Reasons to be hopeful

Speakers:

-Jim Egan is the lead author of the Digital News Report 2026 and is a senior research associate at the Reuters Institute.

-Richard Fletcher is a co-author of the Digital News Report and is the Director of Research at the Reuters Institute.

-Host Mitali Mukherjee is the Director of the Reuters Institute and is a political economy journalist with more than two decades of experience in TV, print and digital journalism.