Reuters Institute

Digital News Report

2025
Reuters Institute
Digital News Report 2025

Nic Newman with Amy Ross Arguedas, Craig T. Robertson, Rasmus Kleis Nielsen, and Richard Fletcher

Main sponsor

Supported by

Spanish translation supported by

Survey by

© Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism

DOI: 10.60625/risj-8qqf-jt36
4 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

Contents
Foreword by Mitali Mukherjee 5 3.18 Portugal 100
Methodology6 3.19 Romania 102
Authorship and Research Acknowledgements 7 3.20 Serbia 104
3.21 Slovakia 106
SECTION 1 3.22 Spain 108
Executive Summary and Key Findings by Nic Newman 9 3.23 Sweden 110
3.24 Switzerland 112
SECTION 2 3.25 Turkey 114
Further Analysis and International Comparison 37 AMERICAS
2.1 How the Public Checks Information it Thinks Might 3.26 United States 118
be Wrong  38
3.27 Argentina 120
2.2 Local News: How Publishers can Still Provide Value
in a Platform World  43 3.28 Brazil 122
2.3 How Audiences Think about News Personalisation 3.29 Canada 124
in the AI Era 48
3.30 Chile 126
2.4 The Changing Landscape for News Podcasts
across Countries 53 3.31 Colombia 128

2.5 Walking the Notification Tightrope: How to Engage 3.32 Mexico 130
Audiences While Avoiding Overload 57 3.33 Peru 132
ASIA-PACIFIC
SECTION 3 3.34 Australia 136
Country and Market Data 63 3.35 Hong Kong 138
EUROPE 3.36 India 140
3.01 United Kingdom 66 3.37 Indonesia 142
3.02 Austria 68 3.38 Japan 144
3.03 Belgium 70 3.39 Malaysia 146
3.04 Bulgaria 72 3.40 Philippines 148
3.05 Croatia 74 3.41 Singapore 150
3.06 Czech Republic 76 3.42 South Korea 152
3.07 Denmark 78 3.43 Taiwan 154
3.08 Finland 80 3.44 Thailand 156
3.09 France 82 AFRICA
3.10 Germany 84 3.45 Kenya 160
3.11 Greece 86 3.46 Morocco 162
3.12 Hungary 88 3.47 Nigeria 164
3.13 Ireland 90 3.48 South Africa 166
3.14 Italy 92
3.15 Netherlands 94 SECTION 4

3.16 Norway 96 References  169

3.17 Poland 98
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 5

Foreword
Mitali Mukherjee
Director, Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism (RISJ)

2024 was the Super-Year of Elections; an intense year for news about differences in polling samples in the pages outlining the
coverage and in many countries, marked by polarised battles methodology and the relevant country pages and we continue
over tradition and change. Against that backdrop, news publishers to work to improve data quality. Because we use online polling,
continue to grapple with greater platform disruption and our focus remains on countries with high internet penetration,
fragmentation, pressure on existing business models and an though we remain committed over time to extending our work to
increasingly fraying connection with audiences. All of this more countries in the Global South – in line with the international
punctuated by a rise in attacks on free press worldwide. mission of the Reuters Institute.
Over the last decade the Digital News Report has documented these Given the richness of the research, this report can only convey a
shifts. Our findings point to a continuing fall in engagement with small part of the data and analysis. More detail is available on our
traditional media sources such as TV, print, and news websites, website: https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/ which contains
while dependence on social media, video platforms, and online slide packs and charts, along with a licence that encourages reuse,
aggregators grows. subject to attribution.
While overall trust in the news has remained stable for the third Making all this possible, we are hugely grateful to our sponsors, in
year in a row at 40%, two emerging themes bear keen attention. particular to our main sponsor, the Google News Initiative, which
The first is the rise of an alternative media ecosystem: YouTubers, continues to support research on a truly global scale, as well as
TikTokers, and podcasters. This was evident both in the US and BBC News, Code for Africa, Ofcom, the Irish Coimisiún na Meán,
several global majority countries where social media are widely the Dutch Media Authority (CvdM), the Media Industry Research
used to access news. Alternative media voices often have a wide Foundation of Finland, the Fritt Ord Foundation, the Korea Press
reach and appeal to audiences that news publishers have been Foundation, Edelman UK, NHK (Japan), YouTube, and the Reuters
keen to engage with but the report also shows that, when it comes news agency, as well as our academic sponsors at the Leibniz
to underlying sources of false or misleading information, online Institute for Media Research/Hans Bredow Institute, the
influencers and personalities are seen as the biggest threat University of Navarra, the University of Canberra, the Centre
worldwide along with national politicians. d’études sur les médias, Quebec, Canada, and Roskilde University,
Denmark. Fundación Gabo continues to support the translation of
The second emerging theme is that AI chatbots are being used
the report into Spanish. We are delighted that Ringier
as a source of news for the first time. While the numbers are still
International has joined the group of sponsors this year, enabling
relatively small overall, they are markedly higher for young
us to include Serbia for the first time and we are grateful that
audiences. The delicate dance for news publishers attempting to
Code for Africa continues to support the report as we look to
understand how best to use AI in news becomes more complicated
deepen our coverage of the majority world.
as audiences in most countries remain sceptical about the use of AI
in news; across countries, survey respondents expect that AI will This is the last Digital News Report for our lead author Nic
make the news cheaper to produce but also less trustworthy. Newman. His authorship and contribution have been exemplary
and it has been a privilege to have him as first author. We are
Our report this year is based on data from almost 100,000
delighted to now have Jim Egan take on that role, bringing deep
individual survey respondents. The addition of Serbia makes
industry experience and an international outlook to the report
this the largest report we have published, covering 48 markets
from 2026.
that together account for more than half the world’s population.
The increasing number and diversity of markets covered – 11 in In a year where the magnitude of economic, social, and cultural
Asia-Pacific, eight in the Americas, four in Africa, as well as 25 change associated with electoral outcomes has been considerable,
in Europe - have led us to compare fewer data points across the we hope the report continues to provide critical and useful data to
whole sample and to focus on meaningful comparisons across newsrooms across the world as it reflects the will of audiences in
markets that are broadly similar. The report provides more detail the news they want to engage with.
6 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

Methodology
This study has been commissioned by the Reuters Institute for where internet penetration is typically over 95%, the differences
the Study of Journalism to understand how news is being between the online population and national population will
consumed in a range of countries. Research was conducted by be small, but in countries where internet penetration is lower,
YouGov using an online questionnaire from the middle of January the differences between the online population and the national
to the end of February 2025. population will be large, meaning we need to be cautious when
• Samples were assembled using nationally representative comparing between markets.
quotas for age, gender and region in every market. Education • The use of a non-probability sampling approach means that it
quotas were also applied in all markets except Kenya, Nigeria, is not possible to compute a conventional ‘margin of error’ for
Morocco, Peru, and Thailand. We also applied political quotas individual data points. However, differences of +/- 2 percentage
based on vote choice in the most recent national election in points (pp) or less are very unlikely to be statistically significant
around a third of our markets including the United States, and should be interpreted with a very high degree of caution.
Australia, and much of Western Europe. The data in all We typically do not regard differences of +/- 2pp as
markets were weighted to targets based on census/industry- meaningful, and as a general rule we do not refer to them in
accepted data. the text. The same applies to small changes over time.
• Data from India, Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa are • Surveys capture people’s self-reported behaviour, which does
representative of younger English-speakers and not the national not always reflect people’s actual behaviour due to biases and
population, because it is not possible to reach other groups in a imperfect recall. They are useful for capturing people’s opinions,
representative way using an online survey. The survey was but these are subjective and aggregates reflect public opinion
fielded mostly in English in these markets,1 and restricted to rather than objective reality.2 Even with relatively large sample
ages 18 to 50 in Kenya and Nigeria. Findings should not be taken sizes it is not possible to meaningfully analyse many minority
to be nationally representative in these countries. groups. Some of our survey-based results will not match
• More generally, online samples will tend to under-represent industry data, which are often based on different
the news consumption habits of people who are older and methodologies, such as web-tracking.
less affluent, meaning online use is typically over-represented • A fuller description of the methodology, panel partners,
and traditional offline use under-represented. In this sense, and a discussion of non-probability sampling techniques can
it is better to think of results as representative of the online be found on our website along with the full questionnaire
population.
REUTERS In markets
INSTITUTE in Northern
FOR THE STUDY and Western
OF JOURNALISM SUMMARY GRAPHS(reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk).
Europe,
/ EXECUTIVE

Graph 1

Market Sample Population Internet Market Sample Population Internet Market Sample Population Internet
size penetration size penetration size penetration

Europe Portugal 2,014 10.2m 86% Asia-Pacific

UK 2,076 68m 96% Romania 2,003 19.6m 89% Australia 2,006 27m 97%
Austria 2,026 9m 95% Serbia 2,010 7.1m 85% Hong Kong 2,004 7.5m 96%
Belgium 2,046 11.7m 95% Slovakia 2,013 5.7m 90% India 2,044 1,442m 56%
Bulgaria 2,029 6.6m 80% Spain 2,014 48m 95% Indonesia 2,028 280m 69%
Croatia 2,092 4m 83% Sweden 2,000 10.7m 96% Japan 2,000 123m 87%
Czech Republic 2,009 10.5m 86% Switzerland 2,023 8.9m 97% Malaysia 2,063 35m 98%
Denmark 2,013 5.9m 100% Turkey 2,002 86m 87% Philippines 2,014 119m 84%
Finland 2,015 5.5m 94% Americas Singapore 2,014 6.1m 94%
France 2,015 65m 87% USA 2,053 342m 93% South Korea 2,038 52m 97%
Germany 2,047 83m 94% Argentina 2,014 46m 89% Taiwan 2,018 23m 85%
Greece 2,010 10.3m 85% Brazil 2,006 218m 84% Thailand 2,003 72m 90%
Hungary 2,001 10m 92% Canada 2,031 39m 94% Africa
Ireland 2,000 5.1m 97% Chile 2,009 19.7m 95% Kenya 2,007 56m 35%
Italy 2,008 59m 87% Colombia 2,013 52m 77% Morocco 2,012 38m 91%
Netherlands 2,020 17.7m 97% Mexico 2,010 129m 81% Nigeria 2,044 229m 39%
Norway 2,031 5.5m 99% Peru 2,022 35m 80% South Africa 2,070 61m 76%
Poland 2,015 40m 86%

Source: United Nations population dashboard (https://www.unfpa.org/data/world-population-dashboard), International Telecommunication Union (ITU) (https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/IT.NET.USER.
ZS) for internet penetration with the exception of Taiwan where all data come from the government of the Island territory.

1
Respondents in India could choose to complete the survey in Hindi and respondents in Kenya could chose Swahili, but in both cases the vast majority selected an English survey.
2
From 2012 to 2020 we filtered out respondents who said that they had not consumed any news in the past month. From 2021 onwards we included this group, which generally has lower
interest in news. In previous years this group averaged around 2–3% of the starting sample in each market, meaning that the decision to include it has not affected comparative results in any
significant way. Some figures have been affected by one or two points in the UK, USA, and Australia, and we have taken this into account when interpreting changes involving these years.
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 7

Authorship and Research

Acknowledgements
Nic Newman is Senior Research Associate at the Reuters Institute
for the Study of Journalism and is also a consultant on digital media,
working actively with news companies on product, audience, and
business strategies for digital transition. He writes an annual report
for the Institute on future media and technology trends.

Dr Amy Ross Arguedas is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Digital

News at the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. She has
worked extensively on issues around trust in media and previously
worked as a journalist for the Costa Rican newspaper La Nación.

Dr Craig T. Robertson is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Reuters

Institute for the Study of Journalism whose interests include trends in
news consumption, audience trust in and perceptions of news, and the
impacts of technology on the news industry.

Prof. Rasmus Kleis Nielsen is Professor in the Department of

Communication at the University of Copenhagen and Senior Research
Associate at the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism.

Dr Richard Fletcher is Director of Research at the Reuters Institute

for the Study of Journalism. He is primarily interested in global trends
in digital news consumption, the use of social media by journalists
and news organisations, and the relationship between technology
and journalism.

Market-level commentary and additional insight around media

developments have been provided by academic partners and by our
network of Reuters Journalist Fellows around the world. RISJ Senior
Research Associate Dr David Levy did invaluable work editing and further
developing many of the country profiles in this year’s report as did Giles
Wilson. Additional expert analysis and interpretation of the survey data
were provided by the team at YouGov, in particular, Charlotte Clifford,
David Eastbury, Caryhs Innes, Mimi Smith-Jones, and Ben Seddon.
8 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

SECTION 1
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 9

SECTION 1

Executive Summary
and Key Findings
Nic Newman
Senior Research Associate,
Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism
10 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

This year’s report comes at a time of deep political This fourteenth edition of our Digital News Report, which is based
on data from six continents and 48 markets, including Serbia for
and economic uncertainty, changing geo-political
the first time, reminds us that these changes are not always
alliances, not to mention climate breakdown and evenly distributed. While there are common challenges around
continuing destructive conflicts around the world. the pace of change and the disruptive role of platforms, other
details are playing out differently depending on the size of the
Against that background, evidence-based and
market, long-standing habits and culture, and the relationship
analytical journalism should be thriving, with between media and politics. The overall story is captured in this
newspapers flying off shelves, broadcast media and Executive Summary, followed by Section 2 with chapters
web traffic booming. But as our report shows, the containing additional analysis, and then individual country
and market pages in Section 3.
reality is very different. In most countries we find
traditional news media struggling to connect with KEY FINDINGS
much of the public, with declining engagement,
• Engagement with traditional media sources such as TV,
low trust, and stagnating digital subscriptions.
print, and news websites continues to fall, while dependence
on social media, video platforms, and online aggregators
An accelerating shift towards consumption via social media and
grows. This is particularly the case in the United States where
video platforms is further diminishing the influence of ‘institutional
polling overlapped with the first few weeks of the new Trump
journalism’ and supercharging a fragmented alternative media
administration. Social media news use was sharply up (+6pp)
environment containing an array of podcasters, YouTubers, and
but there was no ‘Trump bump’ for traditional sources.
TikTokers. Populist politicians around the world are increasingly
able to bypass traditional journalism in favour of friendly partisan • Personalities and influencers are, in some countries, playing
media, ‘personalities’, and ‘influencers’ who often get special access a significant role in shaping public debates. One-fifth (22%)
but rarely ask difficult questions, with many implicated in spreading of our United States sample says they came across news or
false narratives or worse. commentary from popular podcaster Joe Rogan in the week
after the inauguration, including a disproportionate number
These trends are increasingly pronounced in the United States of young men. In France, young news creator Hugo Travers
under Donald Trump, as well as parts of Asia, Latin America, and (HugoDécrypte) reaches 22% of under-35s with content
Eastern Europe, but are moving more slowly elsewhere, especially distributed mainly via YouTube and TikTok. Young influencers
where news brands maintain a strong connection with audiences. also play a significant role in many Asian countries, including
In countries where press freedom is under threat, alternative Thailand.
ecosystems also offer opportunities, at their best, to bring fresh • News use across online platforms continues to fragment, with six
perspectives and challenge repressive governments. But at the same online networks now reaching more than 10% weekly with news
time these changes may be contributing to rising political content, compared with just two a decade ago. Around a third of
polarisation and a coarsening debate online. In this context, our our global sample use Facebook (36%) and YouTube (30%) for
report uncovers a deep divide between the US and Europe, as well as news each week. Instagram (19%) and WhatsApp (19%) are used
between conservatives and progressives everywhere, over where the by around a fifth, while TikTok (16%) remains ahead of X at 12%.
limits of free speech should lie – with battle lines drawn over the role
of content moderation and fact-checking in social media spaces. • Data show that usage of X for news is stable or increasing across
many markets, with the biggest uplift in the United States (+8pp),
Australia (+6pp), and Poland (+6pp). Since Elon Musk took over
This year’s survey also highlights emerging challenges in the form
the network in 2023 many more right-leaning people, notably
of AI platforms and chatbots, which we have asked about for the
young men, have flocked to the network, while some progressive
first time. As the largest tech platforms integrate AI summaries
audiences have left or are using it less frequently. Rival networks
and other news-related features, publishers worry that these
like Threads, Bluesky, and Mastodon are making little impact
could further reduce traffic flows to websites and apps. But we
globally, with reach of 2% or less for news.
also show that in a world increasingly populated by synthetic
content and misinformation, all generations still prize trusted • Changing platform strategies mean that video continues to
brands with a track record for accuracy, even if they don’t use grow in importance as a source of news. Across all markets
them as often as they once did. the proportion consuming social video has grown from 52%
in 2020 to 65% in 2025 and any video from 67% to 75%.
With growing numbers of people selectively (and in some cases In the Philippines, Thailand, Kenya, and India more people
consistently) avoiding the news, we look into the potential now say they prefer to watch the news rather than read it,
benefits of using new generative AI technologies to personalise further encouraging the shift to personality-led news creators.
content and make it feel more engaging for younger people. • Our survey also shows the importance of news podcasting
Our report, which is supported by qualitative research in three in reaching younger, better-educated audiences. The United
markets (the UK, US, and Norway), also includes a chapter on the States has among the highest proportion (15%) accessing one
changing state of podcasting as the lines blur with video talk or more podcasts in the last week, with many of these now
shows and explores the prospects for charging for audio content. filmed and distributed via video platforms such as YouTube and
We also investigate where the value lies in local news and what TikTok. By contrast, many northern European podcast markets
appetite there might be towards more flexible ways of paying for remain dominated by public broadcasters or big legacy media
online content, including ‘news bundles’. companies and have been slower to adopt video versions.
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 11

AI chatbots

News podcasts

• TikTok is the fastest growing social and video network, adding • These data may be of some comfort to news organisations hoping
a further 4pp across markets for news and reaching 49% of our thatOnline news sites/apps
AI might increase the value of human-generated news.
online sample in Thailand (+10pp) and 40% in Malaysia (+9pp). To that end we find that trusted news brands, including public
But at the same time people in those markets see the network service news
Social brands in many countries, are still the most frequently
media
as one of the biggest threats when it comes to false or misleading named place people say they go when they want to check whether
information, along with Facebook. something
Print is true or false online, along with official (government)
sources. This is true across age groups, though younger people are
• Overall, over half our sample (58%) say they remain concerned
proportionately more likely than older groups to use social media
about their ability to tell what is true from what is false when it TV
to check information as well as AI chatbots.
comes to news online, a similar proportion to last year. Concern is
highest in Africa (73%) and the United States (73%), with lowest • One more relatively positive sign is that overall trust in the news
levels in Western Europe (46%). (40%) has remained stable for the third year in a row, even if it
is still four points lower overall than it was at the height of the
• When it comes to underlying sources of false or misleading
Coronavirus pandemic.
information, online influencers and personalities are seen as the
biggest threat worldwide (47%), along with national politicians • As publishers look to diversify revenue streams, they are
(47%). Concern about influencers is highest in African countries continuing to struggle to grow their digital subscription businesses.
such as Nigeria (58%) and Kenya (59%), while politicians are The proportion paying for any online news remains stable at 18%
considered the biggest threat in the United States (57%), Spain across a basket of 20 richer countries – with the majority still happy
(57%), and much of Eastern Europe. with free offerings. Norway (42%) and Sweden (31%) have the
highest proportion paying, while a fifth (20%) pay in the United
• Despite this, the public is divided over whether social media
States. By contrast, 7% pay for online news in Greece and Serbia
companies should be removing more or less content that
and just 6% in Croatia.
may be false or harmful, but not illegal. Respondents in the UK
and Germany are most TRUMPlikely to say too little is beingSECOND
removed, TRUMP
BUMP BUMP?
72% those in the United
75%while States are split, with those on
(all boats the
(just right
social/video TRADITIONAL NEWS MEDIA LOSING INFLUENCE –
believing
69%
rise) benefits)
far too much is already taken down and those on the left UNITED STATES IN THE SPOTLIGHT
saying the opposite.
If Donald Trump’s first-term victory was facilitated by mass exposure
• We find AI chatbots and interfaces emerging as a source of news 54% in the mainstream media and plenty of airtime from partisan outlets,
as search engines and other platforms integrate real-time news. 50% this time around his success was at least in part due to his courting
50% 47% 48%
The numbers are still relatively small overall (7% use for news each of an alternative media ecosystem that includes podcasters and
week) but much higher with under-25s (15%). YouTubers. That process has continued in office, with social media
• With many publishers looking to use AI to better personalise news influencers and content creators invited to press briefings while some
content, we find mixed views from audiences, some of whom worry traditional media have found access denied. We can see some of the
27%
25%about missing out on important stories. At the same time there is
reasons for this change of approach through a number of data points
some enthusiasm for making the news more accessible or relevant, in our survey.
15%
including summarisation (27%), translating stories into different
14%
First, the proportion accessing news via social media and video
languages (24%), better story recommendations (21%), and using 7% networks in the United States (54%) is sharply up – overtaking both
chatbots to ask questions about news (18%).
TV news (50%) and news websites/apps (48%) for the first time.
0% 2013
• More generally,
2015 however,
2017 audiences
2019 in most
2021 countries
2023 remain
2025 Eight years ago, the so-called ‘Trump bump’ raised all boats
sceptical about the use of AI in the news and are more comfortable (or temporarily stalled their sinking), including access to news
with use
REUTERS cases where
INSTITUTE humans
FOR THE STUDYremain in the loop.
OF JOURNALISM Across countries
/ EXECUTIVE websites, TV, and radio, but this time round only social and video
SUMMARY GRAPHS

Graph 2
they expect that AI will make the news cheaper to make (+29 net
difference) and more-up-to-date (+16) but less transparent (-8),
networks (and most likely podcasts too) have grown, supporting a
sense that traditional journalism media in the US are being eclipsed
less accurate (-8), and less trustworthy (-18). by a shift towards online personalities and creators.

PROPORTION THAT USED EACH AS A SOURCE OF NEWS IN THE LAST WEEK (2013–2025) - USA
75% TRUMP BUMP SECOND TRUMP BUMP?
72% (all boats rise) (just social/video benefits)

69% Social and video

networks above TV
for first time
54%
50% 47% 50% TV down 22pp
48%
Online news sites
down 21pp

News podcasts (15%)

25% 27% more than radio (13%)
15%
14% Print down 33pp

7% AI news emerging

0%
2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
TV Print Social and video networks Online news sites/apps

Q3. Which, if any, of the following have you used in the last week as a source of news? Base: Total sample in each year ≈ 2000. Note: No data for 2014. There was a sampling and weighting change from 2021 onwards.
12 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

These shifts are in large part driven by younger groups – so-called commenting on news in the previous week, with 14% saying the
digital and social natives. Over half of under-35s in the United same about Tucker Carlson, the former Fox News anchor, who now
States – 54% of 18–24s and 50% of 25–34s – now say that social operates content across multiple social media and video networks
media/video networks
REUTERS INSTITUTE areSTUDY
FOR THE their main source (+13pp
OF JOURNALISM and +6pp
/ EXECUTIVE including X and YouTube. Other widely accessed personalities
SUMMARY GRAPHS

Graph 3
respectively compared with last year). But all age groups are
prioritising social media to a greater extent – at the expense of
include Megyn Kelly, Candace Owens, and Ben Shapiro from the
REUTERS
right andINSTITUTE FOR
Brian Tyler THE STUDY
Cohen OF JOURNALISM
and David / EXECUTIVE
Pakman from SUMMARY GRAPHS
the left.
traditional channels such as websites and TV news. Graph 4
Analysis from our 2024 Digital News Report shows that the vast
majority of top creators discussing politics are men.
PROPORTION THAT SAY EACH IS THEIR MAIN SOURCE OF
NEWS (BY AGE GROUP) - USA
PROPORTION THAT SAW EACH DISCUSSING OR
18–24 25–34 35–44 45–54 55+ COMMENTING ON THE NEWS IN THE LAST WEEK – USA

54 +13pp Joe Rogan 22 Disproportionate

with younger men
Social 50 +6pp
media/
video 43 +6pp Tucker Carlson 14
networks 34 +3pp
Younger
18 +4pp Megyn Kelly 14
Younger groups
18 -6pp less likely to Candace Owens 13
access news
16 -7pp
websites/apps
Online news
sites/apps 21 -9pp Ben Shapiro 12
27 -7pp
26 Brian Tyler Cohen 7

2 -4pp
David Pakman 7
3
Printed 2 Bari Weiss 4
2
0% 15% 30%
4

3 Q5c. Which of the following people, if any, have you seen discussing or commenting on the news in
the last week? Base: 2053.
4
News
podcasts 3
5
2

1
1
AI chatbots 0
0
0

19 -5pp
Older
25
TV news 28 +4pp
28
48 -3pp

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Q4. You say you’ve used these sources of news in the last week, which would you say is your These are not just big numbers in themselves. These creators are
MAIN source of news? Base: All that used a source of news in the last week aged 18-24 = 213, 25-34 = also attracting audiences that traditional media struggle to reach.
328, 35-44 = 296, 45-54 = 227, 55+ = 788.
Some of the most popular personalities over-index with young
men, with right-leaning audiences, and with those that have low
During the recent US election both main presidential candidates levels of trust in mainstream media outlets, seeing them as biased
gave interviews to personalities and creators who have been or part of a liberal elite.
building significant audiences via online platforms such as
YouTube and X. In our survey we can see for the first time how
influential some of these have become. One-fifth (22%) said they
had come across podcaster and comedian Joe Rogan discussing or
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS Reuters
REUTERS InstituteFOR
INSTITUTE for the
THEStudy of Journalism
STUDY | Digital
OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE 2025 13 GRAPHS
News Report SUMMARY

Graph 5 Graph 6

PROPORTION THAT SAW EACH DISCUSSING OR PROPORTION THAT SAY SOCIAL MEDIA IS THEIR MAIN SOURCE
COMMENTING ON THE NEWS IN THE LAST WEEK – USA OF NEWS (2013–2025) – SELECTED COUNTRIES
Age group 40%

Bigger gap emerging

U35 29 35%
34%
35+ 20 30%
Gender
Male 28 20%
20%
17 19%
Female
JOE 12%
ROGAN Political leaning
10% 10%
Left 17
Centre 22
0%
Right 34 2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025

USA UK Brazil France Denmark Japan

Age group
U35 16
35+ 14

Gender US is joining a social-first club that In many European countries and

includes most Latin American and Japan the influence of social media is
Male 19 African countries plus Philippines, less. Traditional sources brands have
Female 10 Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. been more resilient.
TUCKER
CARLSON Political leaning
Q4. You say you’ve used these sources of news in the last week, which would you say is your
Left 11 MAIN source of news? Base: All that used a source of news in the last week in each country-year
12 ≈ 1900. Note: No data for 2014. There was a sampling and weighting change from 2021 onwards.
Centre
Right 27
At the same time, we find a continued decline in audiences for
Age group traditional TV news, as audiences switch to online streaming for
U35 9 drama, sport, news, and more. TV news reach in France and Japan,
35+ 15 for example, is down 4pp and 3pp to 59% and 50% respectively.
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
Linear radio news, which had been relatively stable, is also on
Male
Gender
16
Graph 7
a downward trend, with younger audiences often preferring
on-demand audio formats such as podcasting.
Female 12
MEGYN
KELLY Political leaning
Left 7
PROPORTION THAT USED TELEVISION AS A SOURCE OF NEWS
IN THE LAST WEEK (2013–2025) – SELECTED COUNTRIES
Centre 12
90%
100% 18–24 25–34 35+
Right 27 85%
85% 84%
82%
Age group 80% 79% Coronavirus
75%
U35 10 75%
72%
70% 69%
35+ 6
50%
65% 61%
Gender 61%
60% 59%
Male 8 55%
25% 50%
Female 7 50% 50%
BRIAN 48%
TYLER Political leaning 45%
COHEN 0%
Left 17 40% 2018
2013 2019
2015 2020
2017 2021
2019 2022
2021 2023
2023 2024
2025
Centre 7
USA UK Germany France Japan Denmark
Right 2
Q3. Which, if any, of the following have you used in the last week as a source of news? Base:
0% 25% 50% Total sample in each country-year ≈ 2000. Note: No data for 2014. There was a sampling and
weighting change from 2021 onwards.
Q5c. Which of the following people, if any, have you seen discussing or commenting on the news in
the last week? Base: U35 = 601, 35+ = 1452, Male = 974, Female = 1079, Left = 476, Centre = 867, Right = 454.

Taken together, these trends seem to be encouraging the growth

The rise of social media and personality-based news is not unique
of100%
a personality-driven alternative media sector which often sets
to the United States, but changes seem to be happening faster –
out its stall in opposition to traditional news organisations, even
and with more impact – than in other countries. The proportion
if, in practice, many of the leading figures are drawn from these.79%
that say social media are their main source of news, for example, is 75%
Prominent 66%YouTubers outside the United States include Julian
relatively flat in Japan and Denmark, though it has also increased
Reichelt, a former editor of Bild in Germany, and Piers Morgan,
in other counties with polarised politics such as the UK (20%) and 50%
a former newspaper editor and TV presenter in the UK, but mostly
France (19%). But in terms of overall dependence, the United States
name recognition in Europe for these news creators is much lower
seems to be on a different path – joining a set of countries in Latin 31%
than
25%the US. One exception, which we also noted in last year’s report,
23%
America, Africa, and parts of Asia where heavy social media and
is the young French creator Hugo Travers, better known by the
political polarisation have been part of the story for some time.
0%
2018 2019 2020 2021 2023
14 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

pseudonym HugoDécrypte, who has built a popular media business Across all 48 markets, dependence on social media and video
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
based on YouTube and TikTok where he tries to explain the news to networks for news is highest with younger demographics, with
Graph 8
younger audiences. Our data suggest that he now has a level of reach 44% of 18–24s saying these are their main source of news and
with under-35s that is comparable with or higher than many French 38% for 25–34s. These groups also show a reluctance to visit news
mainstream news organisations. websites or apps, compared with those aged 35–54. We also added
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
news podcasts and AI chatbots to this question for the first time
PROPORTION THAT SAW HUGO TRAVERS (HUGODÉCRYPTE)
DISCUSSING OR COMMENTING ON THE NEWS IN THE and these Graph 10
newer sources are increasing the challenges of attention
LAST WEEK - FRANCE for traditional news media – amongst younger audiences in
particular – a point we’ll return to later in this summary.

Under-35s in France PROPORTION THAT SAY EACH IS THEIR MAIN SOURCE OF

say they have seen NEWS – BY AGE GROUP – ALL MARKETS
22% Hugo discussing or 18–24 25–34 35–44 45–54 55+
commenting on news
in the last week. 44

Social 38
media/
video 30
By gender By age group networks 24
15

U35 35+ 22
Younger groups
less likely to
9% 8% 22% 4% 26 access news
News websites/apps
websites/ 29
Q5c. Which of the following people, if any, have you seen discussing or commenting on the
apps
news in the last week? Base: U35 = 490, 35+ = 1525, Male = 954, Female = 1061.
29
25

Young news creators are also having an impact in other parts of

3
the world. In Thailand, where the limits of expression have often
2
been tightly controlled, a generation of social media influencers are
AI chatbots 1
changing the nature of information consumption, making it more
outspoken and less formal. Influential TikTokers include Anuwat 1
Noom (5m followers) and Phakkawat Rattanasiriampai (Pond on 0
News) who has built an audience of more than 3m followers for his
3
concise and accessible takes on the news. Kanchai Kamnerdploy is
an actor, journalist, and news anchor whose often controversial talk 3
News
show is watched by millions via Facebook and YouTube, as well as via podcasts 3
conventional TV. More than half our Thai respondents (60%) say they 2
saw him discussing or commenting on news in the previous week. 1

4
5
Radio news 6
6
6

4
4
Print 4

Kanchai Pond on News Anuwat Noom 3

Kamnerdploy 5

In this sometimes-confusing alternative ecosystem the lines are 20

often blurred between journalism, activism, and politics. 23
In Romania, Călin Georgescu built his campaign for the presidency
TV news 27
largely through regular appearances on far-right podcasts and
35
a successful TikTok channel where he talked about his love of
judo alongside his anti-EU and pro-Russian views. Despite being 48
banned from participating in May’s rerun elections, Georgescu
remains the most-mentioned individual as a source of news in 0% 20% 40% 60%
social media by Romanian respondents.
Q4. You say you’ve used these sources of news in the last week, which would you say is your
For more detail see Romania and Thailand country pages in section 3. MAIN source of news? Base: All that used a source of news in the last week: 18-24 = 9807, 25-34 =
15,722, 35-44 = 16,354, 45-54 = 15,804, 55+ = 33,449.
See also Bulgaria, Kenya, and India.
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 15

PLATFORM RESETS AND THEIR IMPACT This year’s data show continuing strengthening of video-based
ON NEWS MEDIA platforms and a further fragmentation of consumption.
There are now six networks with weekly news reach of 10%
Last year we showed how changes to platform strategies for social or more compared with just two a decade ago, Facebook and
media companies such as Meta – including a pulling back from YouTube. Although these networks remain the most important
news and investing in video and creator content – were making it for news amongst the basket of 12 countries we have been tracking
even harder for publishers to reach specific audiences. Following since 2014, they are increasingly challenged by Instagram and
Trump’s
REUTERS victory,
INSTITUTEMeta
FORannounced
THE STUDY OF– JOURNALISM
in another sharp turn ofSUMMARY GRAPHS
/ EXECUTIVE TikTok with younger demographics. But Messenger (5%),
Graph 11
direction – that they will show more political content, but the
effects of this, and what it means for publishers in different
LinkedIn (4%), Telegram (4%,) Snapchat (3%), Reddit (3%),
Threads (1%), and Bluesky (1%) are also an important part of the
countries, are yet to be seen. mix for specific audiences or for particular occasions.

PROPORTION THAT USED EACH NETWORK AS A SOURCE OF NEWS IN THE LAST WEEK (2014–2025) – SELECTED COUNTRIES

45%

40% Facebook algorithm changes to

36%
reduce news to 3% in feeds but
now coming back?
35%

30%

26%
25%

21%
20%

16% 16%
15% 15%

11%
10% 9% 10%

7%
6%
5% 5%
3%
2% 2%
1% 1%
0%
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025

Facebook X (formerly Twitter) Facebook Messenger Instagram Snapchat WhatsApp YouTube TikTok Bluesky

Q12b. Which, if any, of the following have you used for finding, reading, watching, sharing or discussing news in the last week? Base: Total sample in each country-year in UK, USA, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Denmark,
Finland, Australia, Japan (2014-25), Brazil & Ireland (2015-25) ≈ 2000. Note: We did not ask about Bluesky in France, Italy, Finland, Denmark, Japan, and Canada (2024) and in France, Italy, Denmark, and Japan (2025).

ELON MUSK’S X AUDIENCE SHIFTS RIGHTWARDS - and champion

REUTERS ‘free
INSTITUTE speech’
FOR causes.
THE STUDY Several studies
OF JOURNALISM have shown
/ EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
NO LOSS OF OVERALL REACH Graph 12
how X’s influential algorithm is also now pushing right-leaning
perspectives including his own (Graham and Andrejevic 2024)
It is striking to see that X has not lost reach for news on aggregate which may have contributed to this shift in audience.
across our 12 countries despite a widespread X-odus by liberals
and journalists, including some prominent news organisations, PROPORTION THAT USED TWITTER/X FOR NEWS IN THE
some of whom have relocated to Threads or Bluesky.3 It may be LAST WEEK – BY POLITICAL LEANING (2015–2025) – USA
that X’s reach is less affected than regular engagement, which
30% Musk takes over Twitter
industry research suggests had been declining before Trump’s 27% 28% and rebrands as X
26%
return to the White House.4 25%
24%

In the US, at least, the election and its aftermath seems to have Inauguration
20% week boost?
re-energised the network. Our poll, which was conducted in the 17%

weeks after the inauguration, showed that the use of X for news 15% 15%
was 8pp higher than the previous year, reaching almost a quarter
(23%) of the adult population. 10% 9%
9%

When analysing the change in Twitter/X’s audience over time 5%

Trump first term Trump second term
in the US (see next chart) we can see how Jack Dorsey’s Twitter
0%
(pre-2022) was populated mostly by those on the progressive 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025

side of the political spectrum, but the proportion that self-identify Left Right
on the right tripled after Elon Musk took over. The billionaire
has courted and platformed conservative and right-wing Q12b. Which, if any, of the following have you used for finding, reading, watching, sharing or
discussing news in the last week? Base: Left ≈ 500, Right ≈ 500 in each year.
commentators while using his own account to boost Donald Trump

3
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2024/nov/13/why-the-guardian-is-no-longer-posting-on-x
4
https://techsabado.com/2024/08/28/social-media-x-formerly-twitter-engagement-rate-drops-almost-40/
16 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

Across countries we see similar trends with right-leaning audiences REUTERS

(49%) INSTITUTE
now FOR THE
uses TikTok forSTUDY
news,OF upJOURNALISM
10pp on last / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
year, but there
(and creators) increasingly drawn to the platform. In the UK
right-leaning audiences have almost doubled since the X makeover use is much
REUTERS lowerFOR
INSTITUTE in the
Graph 14
are increases everywhere, especially with younger groups. TikTok
THEUnited
STUDY OF States (12%) and
JOURNALISM Europe overall
/ EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
and progressive audiences have halved. Elon Musk has used his own
account (219m followers) to label Britain a ‘police state’ due to its
Graph 14
(11%), though stronger with younger demographics.

measures against rioters involved in violent clashes last summer, PROPORTION THAT USED TIKTOK FOR NEWS IN THE LAST WEEK
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
advocated for the release of a jailed far-right activist, and accused Top markets are almost all in the Global South
GRAPHS

Graph 13
Prime Minister Keir Starmer of failing to act against gangs that
sexually exploited girls.5 Across our wider group of 12 countries, we find
PROPORTION
3% THAT USED TIKTOK FOR NEWS IN THE LAST WEEK
Top markets are almost all in the Global South
50%

Darker colours represent higher levels of audience usage of TikTok for news.
similar trends with right-leaning audiences now level or slightly ahead. Grey indicates markets not covered or TikTok not operating.
3% 50%

PROPORTION THAT USED TWITTER/X FOR NEWS IN THE Darker colours represent higher levels of audience usage of TikTok for news.
News usage of TikTok is up
Grey indicates markets not covered or TikTok not operating.
LAST WEEK – BY POLITICAL LEANING (2021–2025) considerably in all these
countries e.g. Thailand (+10)
Basket of 12 selected countries and Malaysia (+9)
News usage of TikTok is up
considerably in all these
countries e.g. Thailand (+10)
and Malaysia (+9)
UK USA Germany France Spain Italy Denmark Finland Australia Japan Brazil Ireland
30% Right
Romania
25%
25% Left
Morocco Thailand
Romania 49% Philippines
24% 29%
20% 25%
Colombia Nigeria
17% 28%
Morocco Thailand
15% 27% Kenya 49% Philippines
15% 24% 38% 29%
14% Peru
33%
Colombia Nigeria Malaysia
10% 10% Proportion of 27% 28% South Kenya 40%
Right-leaning Africa 38%
users up 1.5x Peru 33%
5% 33% Malaysia
Musk takes over Twitter
and rebrands as X South 40% Indonesia
33% use TikTok for any purpose,
Africa 34%
0% 17%
33%(+3) for news, 12% USA, 6% UK
2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Indonesia
33%
Q12b. Which, if any, of the following have you usefor
used TikTok forreading,
finding, any purpose,
watching, sharing or discussing
34%
17%
news in the last week? Base: Total sample in (+3)
each for news,
market 12%
≈ 2000. USA,
Note: 6% UK
TikTok has been banned in India
and does not operate in Hong Kong.
UK
30% Q12b. Which, if any, of the following have you used for finding, reading, watching, sharing or discussing
Right
29% news in the last week? Base: Total sample in each market ≈ 2000. Note: TikTok has been banned in India
Weekly
and does notYouTube use,
operate in Hong for any purpose, is up 2pp on aggregate to 63%,
Kong.
25% with news Leftuse stable at 30%. Once again, we find the heaviest news

users of this video platform are in Africa and parts of Asia. Over half
20%
18% of our samples in India, Thailand, and Kenya say they use YouTube for
15% 16% news. Growth has been driven by relatively cheap data charges along
Proportion of
PROPORTION
with lower literacy THAT USEDhistorically,
levels YOUTUBE FOR NEWS INvideo
preferencing THE LAST WEEK
formats.
10% 10% Right-leaning Top markets are almost all in the Global South
users up 2x
PROPORTION
15% THAT USED YOUTUBE FOR NEWS IN THE LAST WEEK
55%
5%
Musk takes over Twitter Top markets are almost all in the Global South
and rebrands as X Darker colours represent higher levels of audience usage of YouTube.
0%
2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 15% 55%

Left Right Darker colours represent higher levels of audience usage of YouTube.
YouTube news use is
broadly stable this year
Q12b. Which, if any, of the following have you used for finding, reading, watching, sharing or discussing – very little change in
news in the last week? Base: Left/Right in each year in basket of 12 select countries ≈ 4100/3800, UK ≈ 300/300. news use or top countries
YouTube news use is
broadly stable this year
S Korea
– very little change in50%
These data show the challenge for news media that say they news use or top countries
are putting fewer resources into the platform due to lower Taiwan
46% S Korea
engagement and a hostile environment (Newman and Cherubini 50%
Thailand
2025), but worry that journalism could be ceding important 55% Taiwan
Morocco 46%
ground to content creators and influencers peddling opinions 49% India
Thailand
not based in evidence. Nigeria
55%
55%
Mexico
35% 49%
Morocco
49% India Kenya
55% 54%
TIKTOK GROWTH CONTINUES FOR NEWS Brazil
Mexico
37%
Nigeria Indonesia
35% 49% South 41%
Africa Kenya
While X remains a powerful force in the United States and a Brazil
42% 54%
Indonesia
Philippines
few other countries, the most significant story elsewhere is 37% South 41% 50%
63% (+2) use YouTube for any purpose,
Africa
fast-growing news consumption on TikTok, as well as 30%
42% for news, 30% USA, 13% UK

consistently high levels of news use via YouTube and Facebook. Philippines
63% 50%
Q12b. Which, if any, of the following have you(+2)
useduse
forYouTube
finding,for any purpose,
reading, watching, sharing or
30% for news, 30% USA, 13%
discussing news in the last week? Base: Total sample in each market ≈ 2000.UK
Overall, a third (33%) of our global sample use TikTok for any
purpose and about half of those use the app for news (17%). Q12b. Which, if any, of the following have you used for finding, reading, watching, sharing or
The fastest growth is in Thailand where almost half of our sample discussing news in the last week? Base: Total sample in each market ≈ 2000.

5
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy7kpvndyyxo
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 17

RISE OF VIDEO NETWORKS INCREASES PRESSURE We changed the question codes this year to allow us to distinguish
ON NEWS MEDIA news creators (those that mainly post about news) from
personalities and celebrities (that occasionally talk about news).
Traditional social networks such as Facebook and Twitter were It is a blurry dividing line for many respondents but when
built around the social graph – effectively this meant content exploring these richer data (including alternative media,
posted directly by your friends and contacts. But video networks politicians, and ordinary people) we get a more detailed
such as YouTube and TikTok are driven much more by creator- understanding of the dynamics in different countries. For
content and ‘must see’ hits. example, when looking at X in the UK we find that mainstream
media
REUTERS brands stillFOR
INSTITUTE capture mostOF
THE STUDY attention, whereas
JOURNALISM in the SUMMARY
/ EXECUTIVE United GRAPHS
For several years we have asked where people pay attention when
using social networks and have found that mainstream media is Graph 16
States competition from other news media, politicians, and news
creators is much stronger, reflecting the personality and
at best challenged by – at worst losing out to – these online influencer-led trends we discussed earlier.
creators and personalities, even when it comes to news. This
trend is evident again this time in data aggregated across all 48
PROPORTION THAT PAY MOST ATTENTION TO EACH WHEN
markets. Creators now play a significant role in all the networks USING X FOR NEWS – UK AND USA
apart from Facebook, with traditional media gaining least
attention on TikTok.
REUTERS INSTITUTE FORThis
THEisSTUDY
not surprising as publishers
OF JOURNALISM SUMMARY GRAPHSTraditional news media/journalists
have
/ EXECUTIVE Creators that mostly focus on news

Graph 15
struggled to adapt journalistic content in a more informal space
as well as worrying about cannibalising website traffic by posting
Other news media/journalists
Politicians/political activists
Creators that occasionally focus on news
Ordinary people
in a network that is not set up for referral traffic.
UNITED KINGDOM

PROPORTION THAT PAY MOST ATTENTION TO EACH WHEN 50

USING EACH NETWORK FOR NEWS – ALL MARKETS
Traditional news media/journalists Creators/personalities 28

28
44
X
25 Less 16
Facebook
attention to
creators
7

43
35
YouTube 40

UNITED STATES

43 43

Instagram 42 43

38
X
48

37
X 48

21

Least attention
36 to mainstream
30
media

TikTok 49
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%
More
attention to
Q12 Social sources X. You said that you use X (formerly Twitter) for news … When it comes to
45 creators news on X (formerly Twitter), which of these sources do you generally pay most attention to?
Base: Randomly selected news users of X in UK = 160, USA = 245.

Snapchat 56
The contrasts are even more striking when we compare the use
of TikTok in Norway and Kenya. Both countries have a relatively
0% 25% 50% 75% 100% high number of (mostly young) people using TikTok for news,
but the attention profile is very different. Traditional news brands
Q12 Social sources. You said that you use [network] for news … When it comes to news on still attract most attention when consuming news on TikTok in
[network], which of these sources do you generally pay most attention to? Base: Randomly selected
news users of each network from all markets: Facebook = 16,163, X = 8255, YouTube = 14,570, Instagram = Norway, but news creators/influencers and politicians play a
11,066, Snapchat = 2426, TikTok = 9770. much bigger role in Kenya.
18 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS

Graph 17 Graph 19

PROPORTION THAT PAY MOST ATTENTION TO EACH WHEN PROPORTION THAT PAY MOST ATTENTION TO EACH WHEN
USING TIKTOK FOR NEWS – NORWAY AND KENYA USING YOUTUBE FOR NEWS – INDIA AND BRAZIL

Traditional news media/journalists Creators that mostly focus on news Traditional news media/journalists Creators that mostly focus on news
Other news media/journalists Creators that occasionally focus on news Other news media/journalists Creators that occasionally focus on news
Politicians/political activists Ordinary people Politicians/political activists Ordinary people

NORWAY INDIA

53 36

22 27

19 22

TikTok 25 YouTube 28

22 22

37 30

KENYA BRAZIL

30 46

34 23

42 14

TikTok 56 YouTube 39

38 24

26 22

0% 25% 50% 75% 100% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

Q12 Social sources TikTok. You said that you use TikTok for news … When it comes to news on Q12 Social sources YouTube. You said that you use YouTube for news … When it comes to news
TikTok, which of these sources do you generally pay most attention to? Base: Randomly selected on YouTube, which of these sources do you generally pay most attention to? Base: Randomly
news users of TikTok in Norway = 125, Kenya = 345. selected news users of YouTube in India = 369 and Brazil = 312.

Drilling down into the most YouTube content in India has been exploding in recent years with
mentioned TikTok accounts that a host of successful talk shows that are both critical of and
people cite in open comments supportive of the government of Narendra Modi. Ravish Kumar
in Norway, we find most mentions (12m followers) is a former NDTV anchor, focusing on political
for traditional news brands such as commentary and social issues, while Dhruv Rathee (25m
VG and TV2 that have both invested followers) creates educational videos on social, political, and
significantly in the platform. VG for environmental issues, aiming to simplify complex topics for a
example has used TikTok to simplify broad audience. Shows like The Deshbhakt (5.5m followers),
complex investigative stories into hosted by Akash Banerjee, offer satirical takes on Indian politics.
visually engaging formats tailored Other colourful parts of the Indian manosphere include Ranveer
for Gen Z audiences.6 In Kenya by Allahbadia, popularly known as BeerBiceps, who covers fitness,
contrast, top brands like Citizen are lifestyle, fashion, and entrepreneurship, aimed at young Indians.
challenged by news creators such
as The News Guy (right) and Crazy SOME OF THE MOST POPULAR INDIAN YOUTUBERS
Kennar, a comedian and digital content MENTIONED IN THE CONTEXT OF NEWS
creator best-known for skits that
capture the everyday experiences of
ordinary Kenyans (1.8m followers on
TikTok). This qualitative analysis shows how ‘news’ in these social
networks blurs previously separate genres such as news, comedy,
and even music.

Ravish Kumar Dhruv Rathee BeerBiceps

6
https://www.inma.org/best-practice/Best-Use-of-Social-Media/2025-546/VGs-Social-Media-Amplification-of-Investigative-Journalism
 Reuters
REUTERS InstituteFOR
INSTITUTE for the
THEStudy of Journalism
STUDY | Digital/ News
OF JOURNALISM 19 GRAPHS
Report SUMMARY
EXECUTIVE 2025

Graph 22

Amongst the most-named news creators in Brazil, we find PROPORTION THAT PREFER TO READ, WATCH, OR LISTEN TO
Gustavo Gayer, an internet celebrity and right-wing politician ONLINE NEWS – BY AGE GROUP – GERMANY
who has courted both controversy and conspiracy theories. 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55+ Germany
His channel, which has 1.9m followers, claims to ‘spread the truth‘
and prevent more young people from ‘falling into the ideological
49 Less likely to read
dungeon of the Left’. Other frequently mentioned individuals that
occasionally talk about news include comedian and digital
55
influencer Carlinhos Maia and lifestyle creator Virgínia Fonseca,
who have 34m and 54m followers on Instagram respectively.
Prefer to read 59

UNDERLYING PREFERENCES ARE SHIFTING TOO 72

We’ve already explored the growing importance of online video 71

news and news podcasts at a headline level but it is interesting to
consider this in relation to text, which is still the dominant way in
33 More likely to watch
which most people access news. To what extent is this changing
and with which demographics?
27
Overall, we find that audiences on average across all markets still
prefer text (55%), which provides both speed and control from a Prefer to watch 29
consumers’ perspective, but around a third (31%) say they prefer
to watch the news online and more than one in ten (15%) say they 23
prefer to listen. Country differences are particularly striking, with
more people saying they prefer 22
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDYto
OFwatch rather /than
JOURNALISM read orSUMMARY
EXECUTIVE listen GRAPHS

Graph 21
to the news in India, Mexico, and the Philippines. By contrast the
vast majority still prefer to read online news in Norway, Germany, 18 More likely to listen
and the United Kingdom.
18
PROPORTION THAT PREFER TO READ, WATCH, OR LISTEN TO
ONLINE NEWS – SELECTED MARKETS Prefer to listen 12

All markets 55% 31% 15% 5

Norway 76% 15% 9% 7

UK 73% 16% 11% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

Germany 65% 25% 10% OPTQ11D_2020. In thinking about your online habits around news and current affairs, which
of the following statements applies best to you? Base: All (excluding Don’t knows) in Germany
aged 18–24 = 131, 25–34 = 255, 35–44 = 254, 45–54 = 348, 55+ = 696.
USA 60% 27% 13%
This very clear story about preferences is supported by data that
Japan 48% 41% 10% show that consumption of online video has also jumped
significantly in the last two years, after a period where it had
India 38% 40% 23% remained relatively static. In the United States, for example,
the proportion consuming any news video weekly has grown from
Mexico 36% 41% 23% just over half (55%) in 2021 to around three-quarters (72%) today.
The majority of this consumption is accessed via third-party
Philippines 31% 55% 14% platforms (61%) such as Facebook, YouTube, X, Instagram, and TikTok
rather than via news websites or apps (29%), adding further evidence
0% 25% 50% 75% 100% to the narrative about the diminishing influence of legacy media.
Prefer to read Prefer to watch Prefer to listen
Across all markets the proportion consuming social video news has
OPTQ11D 2020. In thinking about your online habits around news and current affairs, which of the grown from 52% in 2020 to 65% in 2025 and any video from 67%
following statements applies best to you? Base: Total sample (excluding Don’t Knows) in all markets = to 75%. A big part of the change has been the shift of platform
86,027, Norway = 1901, UK = 1708, Germany = 1684, USA = 1785, Japan = 1598, India = 1882, Mexico = 1807,
Philippines = 1874. strategies which has seen networks like Facebook, Instagram,
and X prioritising video more in their algorithms, while Google has
But even in countries with strong reading traditions such as added a short video tab to its search results. At the same time,
Germany (see next chart), the UK, and all of the Nordic markets, publishers have been producing more videos of various duration
we find striking generational differences. Younger groups, especially and showcasing them more prominently within their websites and
those aged 18–24, are much more likely than older ones to prefer apps. The Economist is amongst publishers to have added a vertical
watching – or listening to – the news. This suggests that over time video carousel on its home page, while the New York Times has
publishers may need to adjust resources in the newsroom to incorporated short social media-inspired videos as a way of bringing
produce less text and more audio-visual content. out the personality of its reporters.
20 Reuters
REUTERS Institute FOR
INSTITUTE for the Study
THE of Journalism
STUDY | Digital/News
OF JOURNALISM Report 2025
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS

Graph 23

PROPORTION THAT ACCESSED ONLINE NEWS VIDEO ON EACH IN Our previous research shows that around a third of our global
THE LAST WEEK (2021–2025) – USA audience accesses some type of podcast monthly, including
News video consumption has jumped across networks specialist, sport, entertainment, and a range of lifestyle content,
but this year we have changed our approach, focusing more closely
2021 2023 2025 just on the news and current affairs category. By adding podcasts
to our news consumption question we are able to compare weekly
23
usage for the first time with radio, television, and print news, as well
27
YouTube 32 other digital sources.

This new question still shows significant differences across

19 countries, with higher weekly usage of news podcasts in the United
24 States (15%), reflecting strong investment by publishers,
Facebook 26
independent producers, and advertisers over the last few years.
Our data suggest that in the US a similar proportion now consume
news podcasts each week as read a printed newspaper or magazine
13
X 20
(14%) or listen to news and current affairs on the radio (13%).
(formerly Nordic markets such as Denmark (12%), Sweden (11%), and Norway
Twitter)
(11%) also have well-developed news podcast markets, but
traditional radio remains
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THEmuch
STUDYmore important/ there
OF JOURNALISM (33%SUMMARY GRAPHS
EXECUTIVE

Graph 24
13
average weekly news reach across Northern Europe). In other parts
13
Instagram of the world such as Italy (6%), Argentina (4%), and Japan (3%) the
podcast market is more nascent.

9 PROPORTION THAT CONSUMED A NEWS PODCAST IN THE

13 LAST WEEK – SELECTED COUNTRIES
TikTok

USA 15
40 Ireland 12
53
Any social/ 61 Denmark 12
video network
Net: 72% Austria 11
consume news
31 video weekly, up Sweden 11
29 from 55% in 2021
Norway 11
News 29
website/app
Switzerland 10
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%
Canada 9

Q11 VIDEO 2018a. Thinking about when you used online news-related video (a short clip, a live Australia 9
stream, or a full episode) over the last week, which of the following did you do? Base: Total sample
in each year ≈ 2000. France 9

Germany 9
A number of other countries such as the UK and France have seen
Finland 7
a similar step change in video consumption in the last two years,
again mostly via third-party platforms. But in Finland, Norway, UK 7
and Sweden we find a different pattern, with almost as much video Netherlands 7
consumption coming from destination websites. This is partly 6
Italy
because commercial and public service broadcasters in the Nordic
Belgium 5
regions have invested heavily in their own native video players and
have restricted the amount of content they post to platforms like Singapore 5 9%
YouTube or X. Social media consumption is still mostly ahead, but Spain 4 accessed a news podcast
the gap is closing and in Finland there is now more consumption in the last week (average)
Argentina 4 across selected countries
onsite than via all third-party platforms put together.
Japan 3

THE CHANGING SHAPE AND GROWING INFLUENCE 0% 5% 10% 15% 20%

OF NEWS PODCASTING
Q3. Which, if any, of the following have you used in the last week as a source of news? Base: Total
sample in each market ≈ 2000.
Podcasting started life more than 20 years ago as a way of accessing
and distributing audio programming in a more convenient way.
Audiences were often small, there was no commercial model, and In this year’s report we also asked an open survey question
listeners were passionate about the grass-roots nature of the about which news podcasts people pay most attention to and
medium. But in the last few years many of these assumptions are we conducted qualitative research in a number of markets,
being challenged with much larger audiences, greater including the United States, exploring motivations for listening,
professionalisation, and an increased overlap with video. as well as watching.
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 21

In the United States we find a clear split between analysis-led shows subscriptions at a lower price point. The Economist has around
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
from legacy brands – such as the Daily (New York Times) and Up First 30,000 subscribers paying $5/£5 a month for its podcast+
(NPR) – and personality-led podcasts that mostly deal in Graph 26
package and the New York Times charges a similar amount for
commentary or point of view. Much of the latter overlaps with the some premium content including older episodes.
growth of the (mostly right-leaning) alternative media ecosystem
that we described earlier. In many cases their primary output is not
PROPORTION THAT CONSUMED A NEWS PODCAST IN THE
audio but video, with YouTube now the main channel for podcast LAST WEEK – BY AGE GROUP AND EDUCATION – ALL MARKETS
distribution in the United States. By contrast, Spotify is the most
BY AGE
popular podcast platform in the UK and Germany, along with public
service media apps such as BBC Sounds and ARD Audiothek. 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55+

PERSONALITY-LED OFTEN CONSUMED IN VIDEO

13

15

12

8
The Joe Rogan Candace The Tucker Podcast
Experience

One of my favorite hosts is Candace BY EDUCATION

Owens. I like her as a host because she
Low Medium High
presents factual and verified information,
and she’s fun and engaging.
Female, 35, USA 7

LEGACY NEWS BRAND-LED MOSTLY AUDIO 15

0% 5% 10% 15% 20%

Q3. Which, if any, of the following have you used in the last week as a source of news? Base: 18-24 =
10,556, 25-34 = 16,891, 35-44 = 17,659, 45-54 = 16,901, 55+ = 35,048, Low education = 18,564, medium =
42,017, high = 36,474.

Exploring the question of payment further we find that 42%

Up First The Daily Fox News Podcast of news podcast listeners, across 20 countries we have been
tracking for some time, say they would be willing to pay a
reasonable price for news-related podcasts they like. The figure
Up First I love because it is short and gives
tends to be higher in countries with greater consumption and
the top three things that are going on …
where the market offering is more developed. The affordances
And something I can quickly listen to,
of podcasting, which include a deep connection to the host and
be aware of, go into my day.
a considerable amount of time spent listening, could be a key
Female, 32, USA
factor in this relatively high willingness-to-pay figure. A high
proportion of people (73%) also say listening to podcasts helps
Outside the US we tend to find that legacy media brands still play them understand issues at a deeper level.
a bigger role, especially programmes produced by public service
For further analysis see section 2.4: The Changing Landscape for News
media. Having said that, in the United Kingdom commercial
Podcasts across Countries
companies such as Goalhanger and Global Radio are providing
strong competition for the BBC, with shows such as The Rest is
Politics and the News Agents most mentioned by respondents. ONLINE MISINFORMATION AND NEWS LITERACY
These commentary-based shows tend to be filmed for YouTube with
highlight clips used to drive new audiences on TikTok and Instagram. As audiences are exposed to a wider range of non-traditional
news sources through social media and other platforms, a number
As we’ve pointed out in the past, news podcast consumption is higher of international organisations have expressed concern about the
amongst the under-35s, as well as those with higher incomes and implications for society and democracies around the world.
education. This group is particularly appealing for news organisations The World Economic Forum Global Risks Report (2025) 7 identified
looking to attract the next generation of subscribers. To that end misinformation and disinformation as the most pressing risks for
publishers have started to experiment with a range of payment the next two years, highlighting threats such as AI-generated fakes
options that include early access, extra content, and even separate and declining trust in institutions.

7
https://reports.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Global_Risks_Report_2025.pdf
22 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

In our survey, more than half of our respondents worldwide (58%) At the same time a significant group (32%) believes that
agree that they are worried about what is real and fake online when journalists are a big part of the problem. This is especially the
it comes to news – a similar number to last year, but 4pp higher case in countries where mainstream media are seen to be unduly
than in 2022. Concern is highest in Africa (73%) where social media influenced by powerful agendas (e.g. Greece and Hungary).
are widely used for news across all demographics, as well as the In polarised markets such as the United States, those that identify
United States (73%), and lowest in Europe (54%). But it is on the right
REUTERS are also
INSTITUTE FORmuch more OF
THE STUDY inclined to see/ news
JOURNALISM media
EXECUTIVE as
SUMMARY GRAPHS
important to put expressed
REUTERS INSTITUTE concern
FOR THE STUDY in perspective,
OF JOURNALISM given that
/ EXECUTIVE
Graph 28
a major threat, with many believing that they deliberately
SUMMARY GRAPHS

Graph 27
research shows that this is often driven by narratives they disagree
with or perceptions of bias, rather than information that is
misinform the public and work to a liberal agenda.

objectively ‘made up’ or false (Nielsen and Graves 2017).

PROPORTION THAT CONSIDER EACH A MAJOR MIS- OR
PROPORTION CONCERNED ABOUT WHAT IS REAL AND FAKE DISINFORMATION THREAT – ALL MARKETS
WHEN IT COMES TO ONLINE NEWS - ALL MARKETS
Politicians or political 47 57% in United States
parties in my country

Africa 73 Online influencers/ 59% in Kenya,

personalities 47 58% Nigeria

USA & Canada 68 Foreign governments,

politicians, or political 39
parties from other countries

Latin America 62
Activists or activist groups 37
58%
are concerned Higher in countries
Asia-Pacific 60 about what is
with low trust in news
real and what is News media and journalists 32 (e.g. USA, Greece
fake on the
internet – also Australia)

Europe 54 Celebrities (e.g. singers, 29

actors, sports stars)
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%
Ordinary people 23

0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

Q_fake_sources. When it comes to false and misleading information online these days, in general,
Nigeria South Africa USA Brazil which of the following would you say poses a major threat? Please select all that apply. Base: Total

84% 73% 73% 67%

sample across all markets = 97,055.

+3pp +9pp When it comes to the networks through which misleading or false
on 2024 on 2023
information might be spread, Facebook and TikTok are seen as
creating the biggest threat across markets. Facebook has been
Q_FAKE_NEWS. Please indicate your level of agreement with the following statement. at the centre of public concern since we first asked about these
‘Thinking about online news, I am concerned about what is real and what is fake on the
internet.’ Base: Total sample in all markets = 97,055, Africa = 8133, US & Canada = 4084, Latin issues, whereas TikTok has overtaken other long-established
America = 12,074, Asia-Pacific = 22,232, Europe = 50,532, all individual countries ≈ 2000. Nigeria =
2044, USA = 2053, South Africa = 2070, Brazil = 2006. platforms in this regard. In Germany, Ireland, and the UK, X is
considered to be an equally serious threat, with concerns about
the lack of moderation feeding unrest in Dublin and UK cities in
In many countries, leading national politicians are considered by 2023 and 2024, as well as Elon Musk’s interventions in domestic
respondents to pose the biggest threat, especially in the United politics angering many.
States where Donald Trump’s second term has been marked by a
strategy of ‘flooding the zone’, often with misleading information Messaging apps such as WhatsApp are mostly considered
or false statements (e.g. that Ukraine started the war with less of a threat, as discussion tends to be more contained
Russia8). He has long used the term ‘fake news’ to vilify media within trusted groups of friends. One notable exception is India,
critical of his policies. the messaging app’s largest market, where fake news,
including videos circulating in large groups, have in the past
In many African and Latin American countries, as well as parts of incited mob violence (and deaths).10 Just over one in ten (11%)
Asia, there is equal concern around the role of online influencers think that people they know (including friends and family) also
or personalities. A recent investigation by the news agency AFP in play a role in spreading misinformation.
Nigeria and Kenya found that prominent influencers were hired
by political parties or candidates in both countries to promote
false narratives in social media.9

8
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9814k2jlxko
9
https://factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com.364Z8FB
10
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-57831201
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 23

Graph 29

PROPORTION THAT CONSIDER EACH A MAJOR MIS- OR turn to in each country (see next chart). In the UK, Germany, and
DISINFORMATION THREAT – ALL MARKETS Japan the majority – including those from both left and right – said
they would turn to public service broadcasters or their websites,
Facebook 49 Philippines: 68%
(BBC News, ARD, and NHK), with commercial sites a distant second,
South Africa: 56%
TikTok 48 Kenya: 55% but in the United States people turned to the news brand that they
UK: 61%, Ireland: 54%, identified with most politically – CNN for left-leaning respondents
X 34 Germany: 53% and Fox News for more right-leaning ones. In South Africa,
Instagram 32 consumers turned in equal numbers to commercial brands and the
public broadcaster (SABC). These data show the continuing
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
YouTube 30
importance of independent public media brands as an anchor point
Telegram 23 Graph 31
in an uncertain world – and at moments of national and international
significance – even if people don’t use them as often as they once did.
News websites 22

WhatsApp 21 India: 53% MOST MENTIONED NEWS BRANDS FOR CHECKING WHETHER
SOMETHING WAS FALSE, MISLEADING, OR FAKE – SELECTED
Search engines 17
COUNTRIES
Face-to-face discussions 11 News brands Fact-checking brands
with people I know
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

Q_fake_channels_new. Which of the following do you think poses a major threat in terms of false
and misleading information? Please select all that apply. Base: Total sample across all markets = 97,055. 1. BBC News 1. Snopes
United Kingdom 2. The Guardian 2. FullFact
3. Sky News 3. BBC Verify
In this year’s report we have explored the tactics and approaches
audiences use when they want to check information that they think News brands Fact-checking brands
might be false. One important finding that will encourage many in
the news industry is that the biggest proportion of respondents say
they would first look to news outlets they trust (38%), official
1. CNN 1. Snopes
sources (35%), and fact-checkers (25%) rather than sources such
United States 2. Fox News 2. Factcheck.org
as social media (14%). Having said that, younger users were 3. BBC News 3. Politifact
proportionately more likely than other groups to check social
media, including by reading comments from other users to help News brands Fact-checking brands
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
them make up their minds, as well as using AI chatbots. This
Graph 30
highlights how younger groups have developed a ‘flatter’ pattern
of trust in media than older generations, gathering information 1. ARD (incl. Tagesschau) 1. Correctiv
without a shared sense of a ‘hierarchy of validation’.11 Germany 2. ZDF (incl. heute) 2. Mimikama
3. n-tv 3. Faktencheck.de
PROPORTION THAT SAY THEY WOULD USE EACH IF THEY
WANTED TO CHECK WHETHER SOMETHING WAS FALSE, News brands Fact-checking brands
MISLEADING, OR FAKE – ALL MARKETS

A news source I trust 38

Official source (e.g. 1. NHK 1. Japan Fact-Check

government website) 35 2. Yahoo! News 2. FactCheck Navi
Japan
3. Yomiuri Shimbun
Search engine 33
News brands Fact-checking brands
A fact-checking website 25

Somebody I know and 19

trust personally
1. News24 1. Wikipedia
Comments from 18 Higher with U35s
other users South Africa 2. SABC 2. Snopes
3. eNCA 3. Africa Check
Wikipedia 17
Q_fake_verify_2a/b. In the previous question you said you would tend to go to a news
Social media or video 14 source/fact-checking site you trust to check information. Which one? Base: All those that
network Much higher selected trusted brands/fact-checking organisations in the UK = 867/571, United States =
with U35s 873/702, Germany = 811/415, Japan=622/142, South Africa = 804/619.
An AI chatbot 9

0% 25% 50% 75% 100% Fact-checking brands have much lower name recognition overall,
Q_fake_verify_1. Imagine you came across something important in the news online that you suspect with the exception of the United States where services like Snopes and
may be false, misleading, or fake. If you decided you wanted to check it, where would you usually go?
Please select all that apply. Base: Total sample in all markets = 97,055.
Politifact play a significant role in the public conversation. Elsewhere,
publishers have been doubling down on their own fact-checking
services, including BBC Verify in the UK and the Daily Maverick’s
Search engines (33%) are another important way in which people
FactCheck hub in South Africa in association with NPO Africa Check.
check for information but probing further we found that their
underlying intent was to find the same trusted sources. In each case For further analysis see section 2.1: How the Public Checks Information it
respondents were able to identify the specific brands they would Thinks Might be Wrong

11
‘Gen Z: Trends, Truth and Trust’, Channel 4 research, Jan. 2025, https://assets-corporate.channel4.com/_flysystem/s3/2025-02/Gen%20Z%20Trends%20Truth%20and%20Trust_0.pdf
24 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

NEWS LITERACY MAKES LESS DIFFERENCE THAN accuracy of posts are managed by users. All this comes as
YOU MIGHT THINK European governments are moving in the opposite direction,
looking to work more closely with fact-checkers on an EU-wide
We also asked in this year’s survey about whether people had disinformation code, aiming to reduce hate speech and protect
received any education or training – formal or informal – on how the integrity of elections. Worries have grown since the Romanian
to use news. Across markets we find that only around a fifth (22%) presidential elections were annulled in December 2024 amid
of our global sample have done so but young people were roughly allegations about Russian interference. Against this background
twice as likely to say they have had news literacy training we asked users how they felt about the removal of content that
compared with older groups (36% U35s compared with 17% 35+ could be seen as harmful or offensive, even if it was not illegal.
globally). A number of Nordic markets, including Finland (34%),
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
had the highest levels of news literacy training. France (11%), Across our entire sample, people were almost twice as likely to
Graph 32
Japan (11%), and most of the countries in Eastern Europe and the say that platforms were removing too little rather than too much
Balkans had the least. (32%/18%). This view is particularly strong in the United Kingdom
where new rules are starting to be enforced requiring platforms to
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
do more to counter harmful content and make them safer by
PROPORTION THAT HAVE RECEIVED SOME EDUCATION OR
TRAINING ABOUT THE NEWS – SELECTED COUNTRIES
Graph 33
design,13 as well as in Germany. But it is a very different story in
the United States and Greece where opinion is more split.
Finland USA Brazil

PROPORTION THAT THINK TOO LITTLE HARMFUL (BUT LEGAL)

CONTENT IS BEING REMOVED FROM SOCIAL AND VIDEO
NETWORKS – SELECTED COUNTRIES
34% 23% 19% Too little About right Too much Don’t know

65% 30% 27% 50

UK
under-35s under-35s under-35s
14
12
Removing
Hungary UK France 24 too little

Germany 44
16
13
16% 16% 11%
27
29% 26% 19%
under-35s under-35s under-35s
USA 27
23
Q_fake_news_literacy. Have you ever received any education or training on how to use news 24
(e.g., critical media understanding, analysing sources, news literacy etc.)? This could have been
at school, college or university, online or offline, or in a formal or informal setting. Base: Total 26
sample in each country ≈ 2000.

Greece 26 Removing
too much
19
We do find that those who have engaged in news literacy training
33
are slightly more trusting of news than those that have not, but
22
this may just be a function of higher levels of education overall.
When checking information, these groups tend to use more 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%
different approaches on average than those that have had no
training – including visiting trusted sources, fact-checking Q1_social_2025. Social media and online video networks sometimes remove content that is
deemed harmful or offensive (in addition to content that is illegal); which comes closest to your
websites, official sources, and politicians, but this exposure to view? Base: Total sample in each country ≈ 2000.
different perspectives may also be making them more sceptical.
Those that have had literacy training are more concerned about
misinformation – and are more likely to see social and video These differences around where the limits of free speech should
networks as a major threat (83% compared with 74%). lie are shaped in part by Europe’s history on one side and the US
commitment to the First Amendment on the other. But even
within the United States we find striking divisions too between
HOW AUDIENCES VIEW THE ISSUE OF CONTENT those that identify on the left and the right. Almost half of those
MODERATION IN SOCIAL MEDIA on the right (48%) think too much is already being removed,
whereas a similar proportion of those on the left (44%) think
On the campaign trail, Donald Trump strongly opposed content
exactly the opposite.
moderation and fact-checking on social media platforms, which
he suggested, without offering systematic evidence, censor Across all 48 markets, those on the left also want more content
conservative voices and ‘stifle free speech’.12 Just days before moderation, but those on the right are much more evenly split.
Trump took office, Meta’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced it Younger people are also in favour of more content moderation in
would be abandoning Facebook and Instagram’s long-standing general, but are less likely to say that than older groups, perhaps
fact-checking programmes in the United States and replacing because they have grown up seeing and managing a wider set of
them with X-style ‘community notes’, where comments on the perspectives in social media.

12
https://www.akingump.com/en/insights/alerts/President-Trumps-Freedom-of-Speech-Order-Takes-Aim-at-Social-Media-Broadcasters
13
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/online-safety/illegal-and-harmful-content/time-for-tech-firms-to-act-uk-online-safety-regulation-comes-into-force/
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS Reuters
REUTERS InstituteFOR
INSTITUTE for the
THEStudy of Journalism
STUDY | Digital/ News
OF JOURNALISM 2025 25 GRAPHS
Report SUMMARY
EXECUTIVE

Graph 34 Graph 35

PROPORTION THAT THINK TOO LITTLE HARMFUL (BUT LEGAL) PROPORTION THAT TRUST MOST NEWS MOST OF THE TIME –
CONTENT IS BEING REMOVED FROM SOCIAL AND VIDEO ALL MARKETS
NETWORKS – BY POLITICAL LEANING
Northern Finland 67
UNITED STATES Europe Denmark 56
Norway 54
Left-leaning Sweden 53 +3pp
Ireland 51 +5pp
Too little About right Too much Don’t know
UK 35
44 Western Netherlands 50 -4pp
21 Europe Switzerland 46 +5pp
14 Germany 45
20 Belgium 43
Austria 41 +6pp
0% 20% 40% 60%
France 29

Right-leaning Southern Portugal 54

Europe Italy 36
Too little About right Too much Don’t know Croatia 36 +4pp
Turkey 33
16 31
Spain
14
Greece 22
48
22 Eastern Poland 47 +8pp
Europe Czech Republic 33
0% 20% 40% 60% Serbia 27
Bulgaria 26 -3pp
Romania 26
ALL MARKETS 23
Slovakia
Hungary 22
Left-leaning
Africa Nigeria 68 +7pp
Too little About right Too much Don’t know Kenya 65
South Africa 55
40 Morocco 28 -3pp
26
Asia-Pacific Thailand 55
19
Hong Kong 52 -3pp
16
Singapore 45
0% 20% 40% 60% India 43
Australia 43 +3pp
Right-leaning Japan 39 -4pp
Philippines 38
Too little About right Too much Don’t know Malaysia 37
Indonesia 36
30
South Korea 31
25
Taiwan 30 -3pp
25
19 Latin Brazil 42
America Peru 40 +5pp
0% 20% 40% 60% 36 +4pp
Chile
Mexico 36
Q1_social_2025. Thinking about how social media and online video networks sometimes remove
content that is deemed harmful or offensive (in addition to content that is illegal), which comes Colombia 32
closest to your view? Base: Left/Right in USA = 476/454, All markets = 14,330/13,955. Argentina 32
North Canada 39
America USA 30
TRUST IN THE NEWS
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

Despite a clear decline over the last decade, we find that levels Q6_2016_1. Thinking about news in general, do you agree or disagree with the following statements?
of trust in news across markets are currently stable at 40%. - I think you can trust most news most of the time. Base: Total sample in each market ≈ 2000.

Indeed, they have been unchanged for the last three years. But
we do find significant differences at a national level. Finland has In examining changes over time, we find that some bigger European
amongst the highest levels of trust (67%), with Hungary (22%), countries such as the UK and Germany have seen a significant
Greece (22%), and other countries in Eastern Europe bumping decline in levels of trust around news (-16pp and -15pp respectively
along the bottom. Some African countries such as Nigeria (68%), since 2015). In both countries, politics has become more divided,
and Kenya (65%) also have high trust scores, but it is important with the media often caught in the crossfire. There was a brief uptick
to bear in mind that these are more educated, English-speaking at the beginning of the COVID pandemic as the value of news
survey samples so are not directly comparable. In these became heightened for many users, and trust levels have been
countries, we also find that high trust levels often co-exist with largely stable since. In Finland and Norway trust levels were already
lower levels of press freedom. In Nigeria, for example, RSF high before the pandemic bump. Here, COVID also seems to have
(Reporters Without Borders) says governmental interference in halted any declines, and trust has been maintained or improved
the news media is significant. since the pandemic.
26 Reuters
REUTERS Institute for
INSTITUTE FOR the Study
THE of Journalism
STUDY | Digital /News
OF JOURNALISM Report 2025
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS

Graph 36 Graph 37
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS

PROPORTION THAT TRUST MOST NEWS MOST OF THE TIME

Graph 37Impartiality:
REUTERS INSTITUTE TheOF
FOR THE STUDY most frequently
JOURNALISM mentioned
/ EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
(2015–2025)
Countries with previous falling trust levels, now stable
UK Graph 37 audience complaint relates to the perception that
news media push their own agenda rather than
presenting evidence in a balanced way. Many
100% COVID bump 100% respondentsCOVID
say that
bumpjournalists need to leave their
personal feelings at the door. Avoiding loaded or
sensationalist language was a repeated theme.
35% 60%
51% OVERALL TRUST
50% 32/48 markets 50% Accuracy and truth telling: Audiences would like
journalists to focus on the facts,
45%avoid speculation
35% REUTERS INSTITUTE
andFOR THE STUDY
hearsay, and OF JOURNALISM
to verify / EXECUTIVE
and fact-check SUMMARY GRAPHS
stories
100% COVID bump Graph 37
100% before publishing. Fact-checking the false claims of
COVID bump
others was another suggestion to improve the trust
0%
2015 2025 Germany
0%
2015 of a particular brand. 2025
60%
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
100% 51%
50%
COVID bump
Graph
50% 37
Transparency: Respondents would like to see more
evidence for claims, including fuller disclosure of 45%
35% sources, and better transparency over funding and
60% 45% conflicts of interest. More prominent corrections
OVERALL TRUST when publications get things wrong would be
50% =15/48 markets
0% 0% appreciated, along with clearer and more distinct
2015 45%
2025 2015 2025
100% 100% labelling around news and opinion.
COVID bump COVID bump
100% COVID bump Provide sources and video proof if possible.
68% Male, 33, UK
0% 67%
2015 2025
46% Say where the information is from and the
50% 60% 54% 50%
Norway political view of the author.
Countries
50% with stable or increasing trust levels
45%
Female, 21, UK
100% COVID bump 100% COVID bump
Better reporting: Respondents wanted journalists
0% 0%
2015 2025 2015
68% to spend their time investigating2025
powerful people
0% 54% and providing depth rather than 67%chasing algorithms
2015 2025
100% OVERALL TRUST
46% COVID bump 54%
for clicks. Employing more beat reporters who were
50% (=7/48) markets 50%
true specialists in their field was another
68%
suggestion for improving trust.
67%
Impartiality, accuracy, transparency, and original reporting are
50%
0% what0% the public expects, even if many people think that the
2015 2025 Finland 2015 2025
media continue to fall short. The good news is that these are
things many journalists and news media would like to offer people.
100% COVID bump The
Swedishchallenge
publicationisAftthat, especially
onbladet in polarised
uses ‘transparent’ ethics boxessocieties, thereprocesses
to explain reporting is no
to try to build trust with younger people.
0% clear common agreement on what these terms mean. Improving
2015 2025
68% ‘truth telling’ for one group, for example, could end up alienating
67% 67% another. AddingAft‘transparency’
Swedish publication features
onbladet uses ‘transparent’ ethics(see
boxesthe example
to explain below)
reporting processes
OVERALL TRUST to try to build trust with younger people.
50% 2/48 markets can end up providing more information for hostile groups to take
out of context
Swedish publicationor weaponise.
Aftonbladet uses ‘transparent’ ethics boxes to explain reporting processes
to try to build trust with younger people.

0%
2015 2025

Q6_2016_1. Thinking about news in general, do you agree or disagree with the following
statements? - I think you can trust most news most of the time. Base: Total sample in each
country-year ≈ 2000. Note. No data for Norway in 2015.

WHAT THE MEDIA COULD DO TO INCREASE TRUST Swedish publication Aftonbladet uses ‘transparent’ ethics boxes to explain reporting processes
to try to build trust with younger people.
Whilst recognising that some of the reasons for low trust lie outside
the control of many newsrooms (e.g. politicians stoking distrust),
we asked survey respondents to give their views on areas the news
media itself could improve. The top four themes are consistent Swedish publication Aftonbladet uses ‘transparent’ ethics boxes to explain reporting processes
to try to build trust with younger people.
across countries and also with previous research.14

14
https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/trust-news-project
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 27

NEWS AVOIDANCE AND LOW INTEREST IN THE NEWS In previous research we have identified two groups: 1) consistent
avoiders that typically have low interest in news and low education,
Low trust and low engagement in the news are closely connected and 2) selective avoiders who struggle with news overload and look
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
with ‘avoidance’, an increasing challenge in a high-choice news to protect themselves at certain times or for particular topics. This
environment, where news is often upsetting in different ways. Graph 39
year we have asked again about the reasons for avoidance. These
Across markets, four in ten (40%) say they sometimes or often are many, interlinked, and are mostly consistent across countries.
avoid the news, up from 29% in 2017 and the joint highest figure
we’ve ever recorded (along with 2024).
TOP REASONS FOR NEWS AVOIDANCE
– ALL MARKETS
There are multiple, enormous and overwhelming
horrific situations left, right and centre. It’s too much.
Female, 51, UK
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS 39%
Graph 38 in Bulgaria (63%), Turkey (61%), Croatia (61%),
Avoidance is highest
and Greece (60%). It is lowest in Nordic countries as well as in
say news has negative effect on mood

Taiwan (21%) and Japan (11%).

PROPORTION THAT SAY THEY SOMETIMES OR OFTEN AVOID

THE NEWS – ALL MARKETS
31%
say they are worn out by the amount of news
Bulgaria 63
Turkey 61
61

30%
Croatia
Greece 60
India 50
Kenya 50 say there is too much coverage of conflict/war
Romania 48
Philippines 48
46

29%
UK
Serbia 46
Argentina 46
Brazil 46 say there is too much coverage of politics
Morocco 46
Chile 46
Colombia 44
Mexico
Poland
44
43
20%
USA 42 say there is nothing I can do with the information
Slovakia 42
Thailand 41
Hungary 41
South Africa
Ireland
41
41
18%
Australia 40 say it leads to arguments I’d rather avoid
Canada 40
Austria 39
Switzerland 39
Peru
Indonesia
39
39 18%
Malaysia 39 say it doesn’t feel relevant to my life
Germany 37
Czech Republic 37
Spain
France
Portugal
37
36
35
9%
say news is too hard to understand
Belgium 35
(14% with U35s)
Nigeria 35
Italy 33
Netherlands 32 Q1di_2017ii. Why do you find yourself actively trying to avoid the news? Please select all that
31
40%
Korea apply. Base: All those that often, sometimes, or occasionally avoid news across all markets = 68,542.
Norway 30
Finland 27 average
27
often or sometimes Younger respondents are more likely to say that they feel powerless
Denmark
avoid the news
Singapore 27 these days. in the face of existential issues such as economic insecurity and
Hong Kong 26 climate change, that the news doesn’t feel relevant to their lives,
Sweden 26 or that it can lead to toxic arguments.
Taiwan 21
Japan 11
[It’s upsetting to see] inflammatory stories that
0% 25% 50% 75% 100% directly affect my life (e.g. coverage about
homophobia and transphobia).
Q1di_2017. Do you find yourself actively trying to avoid news these days? Base: Total sample in each
market ≈ 2000. Female, 31, UK
28 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

It is also striking that across countries under-35s are much more Other publications are looking to broaden their news agenda
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
likely to say the news is too hard to follow or understand, through user-needs-based approaches (which we discussed in
Graph 40
suggesting that more could be done to make the news more detail last year) – as well as investing in personality-led curated
accessible to younger and other hard-to-reach groups. newsletters or podcasts with a lighter tone. The Globe and Mail
in Canada has invested in new journalistic beats including a
happiness reporter and a healthy living reporter. Constructive
PROPORTION THAT AVOID THE NEWS BECAUSE IT IS TOO
HARD TO FOLLOW OR UNDERSTAND – BY AGE GROUP – journalism looks to find hope and opportunities in long-
SELECTED COUNTRIES running and difficult stories, while many publications have
invested in text and video formats that explain complex stories
Under-35s 35 and over
in a concise way.
24
Malaysia Meanwhile news organisations such as the BBC see greater
13 ‘personalisation’ as part of the answer to news avoidance and
declining engagement. They have announced plans to use
20
Switzerland artificial intelligence to better tailor news content for younger
10 audiences.
19
Thailand
13 PERSONALISATION AND THE ROLE OF AI

18 The news industry has seen many false dawns with

Singapore
11
personalisation, partly because audiences worry about missing
out on important stories, but also because they sometimes
17 appreciate seeing things outside of their main interests. But
Nigeria
11 with generative AI providing new capabilities to transform the
format and style of stories, as well as making story selection
16 more relevant, personalisation has become a hot topic again.
Philippines
11 In this year’s survey we asked respondents about their interest
in eight different potential AI applications that could be used
13 to better suit their individual needs.
Argentina
5
We found the interest in AI personalisation to be highest when
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
13 it comes to approaches that make news content quicker/easier
US
5 Graph 41
to consume and more relevant, such as summarised versions
of news articles (27%) and translations of news articles (24%).
12
UK
3
PROPORTION THAT SAY THEY WOULD BE INTERESTED IN
USING EACH TYPE OF PERSONALISATION – ALL MARKETS
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25%
Personalised format Personalised selection Other

Q1di_2017ii. Why do you find yourself actively trying to avoid the news? Base: Under-35s/35+ Summarised versions ofnews
who avoid the news at least occasionally in Malaysia = 703/781, Switzerland = 345/1117, Thailand = articles that are quicker to 27
419/1050, Singapore = 354/799, Nigeria = 752/310, Philippines = 741/885, Argentina = 490/1056, USA read
= 421/1070, UK = 374/1145.
News articles translated from
another language into your 24
native language

Story recommendations or
While the issues relating to news alerts based on your 21
interests
wars, volatile politics, and
A customised news homepage
economic gloom may be hard that shows articles based on 21
to change, the news industry is your interests
working on other ways to make
An AI chatbot that answers
news seem less depressing and 18 More with under-35s
questions about the news
more relevant. The Swedish
News articles where the
newspaper Svenska Dagbladet language can be modified for 17
(SvD) has developed an app different reading levels

called Kompakt, with the tag News articles that are

converted from text into audio 15
line: ‘Read less, know more’, (or from audio to text)
incorporating more visual and
News articles that are
playful news formats and a converted from text into video 14
button that allows you to filter (or video into text)

out difficult stories when you 0% 25% 50%

are tired of the news.
AI_personalisation. The news industry is considering using AI to better adapt news content to
people’s individual needs. Which of the following options, if any, would you be interested in using?
Base: Total sample across all markets = 97,055.
 Reuters
REUTERS InstituteFOR
INSTITUTE for the
THEStudy of Journalism
STUDY | Digital/ EXECUTIVE
OF JOURNALISM 2025 29 GRAPHS
News Report SUMMARY

Graph 42

More broadly, we find that interest in options for adjusting the PROPORTION THAT SAY THEY ARE VERY OR SOMEWHAT
format and style of news is higher than options for personalising COMFORTABLE WITH NEWS BEING PRODUCED IN THE
the selection of stories likely linked to those concerns about FOLLOWING WAYS – USA AND EUROPE
missing out. This is especially important because, so far, news Comfortable Neither/nor Don’t know Uncomfortable
media have used automation more for personalised selection
than for changing the form of the content itself. Mainly AI with some human oversight

There is less interest in using chatbots to answer questions (18%),

USA 19 21 7 53
perhaps not surprising given that this functionality is still emerging,
with the FT and the Washington Post amongst those trialling
chatbot-like applications trained on their own content. Overall, while
a relatively small proportion are interested in any single option, it is Europe 15 29 10 46
worth keeping in mind that a majority (66%) is interested in at least
one of them. The public seems curious about and interested in how
AI might help improve their experience of the news and the value it Mainly human with some help from AI
offers, even as they – perhaps like the industry – still do not know
what this should look like.
USA 38 26 6 30
Generally speaking, younger people tend to express higher levels
of interest, especially when it comes to the personalisation of
formats. It is likely that these differences are at least in part driven Europe 30 33 10 27
by young people’s greater familiarity with and higher comfort
with AI. The Independent (UK) has recently launched a new service
aimed at younger readers called ‘Bulletin’ which uses Google’s REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%
generative AI service Gemini to present its regular stories in five Graph 43
Q2_AIComfortlevel_2024_1 . In general, how comfortable or uncomfortable are you with using
to ten bullet points. news produced in each of the following ways? Base: Total sample in USA = 2053, Europe = 50,532.

We also find significant country differences, with interest in

translation services highest in linguistically unique European PROPORTION THAT SAY THEY ARE VERY OR SOMEWHAT
countries with relatively small populations such as Finland, COMFORTABLE WITH NEWS BEING PRODUCED MOSTLY BY
where consumption of news outside the country is relatively high. AI WITH SOME HUMAN OVERSIGHT
By contrast, the ability to adapt news text to different reading
Most comfortable
levels ranks highly in countries with lower literacy. In India, it is the
most popular option. India Thailand Indonesia South Africa

For further analysis see section 2.3: How Audiences Think about
News Personalisation in the AI Era

44% 39% 37% 34%

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND THE NEWS
Looking at audience attitudes to generative AI more widely, we
repeated questions this year around comfort levels for the two most Least comfortable
common scenarios: (a) news content that is produced mainly by AI,
albeit with some human oversight, and (b) mainly by humans with Croatia Finland Denmark Belgium UK

some help from AI.

Over the last year more journalists have been using generative AI
in newsrooms to support their work via research, transcription,
suggested headlines/summaries, and other purposes. We have 9% 10% 10% 10% 11%
also started to see more cases where AI is generating stories
automatically. The UK’s largest regional publisher Reach, for
Q2_AIComfortlevel_2024_1. In general, how comfortable or uncomfortable are you with
example, employs an AI tool called Gutenbot to assist its journalists using news produced in each of the following ways? Mostly by artificial intelligence (AI) with
in rewriting stories for different websites within its network, while some human oversight. Base: Total sample in each country ≈ 2000.

the German tabloid Express.de has used an AI bot called ‘Klara

Indernach’ to author more than 1,500 stories, accounting for 10% It is a similar picture elsewhere, though we find less scepticism in
of stories read.15 Asia where both audiences and publishers have shown less caution
than in Europe or North America.
Audiences remain broadly sceptical of these automated approaches
to news production, with similar scores to last year, but are more In Indonesia, the leading broadcaster TVOne uses AI-generated
accepting of journalists using AI in a supportive role. As with last reporters to present content via its social media channels.
year’s data we find that younger groups – who are more likely to use Nong Marisa is an AI anchor in Thailand which presents the news
AI chatbots regularly – are more comfortable than older groups. We on the Mono 29 TV channel. And several Indian newspapers have
also see more scepticism in Europe than in the United States, where launched YouTube channels using high levels of automation and
big tech companies are investing heavily in these new technologies. AI presentation.

15
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/schultzhomberg_kstamedien-artificialintelligence-klaraindernach-activity-7185555200818970624-C1vd/
30 Reuters
REUTERS Institute FOR
INSTITUTE for the Study
THE of Journalism
STUDY | Digital/News
OF JOURNALISM Report 2025
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS

Graph 44

(+7). At the same time a significant proportion think that AI will

make theINSTITUTE
REUTERS news less transparent
FOR (-8),
THE STUDY OF less accurate
JOURNALISM (-8), and
/ EXECUTIVE less
SUMMARY GRAPHS

Graph 46errors, made up or misrepresented quotes or

trustworthy (-18). Well-publicised cases where Gen AI technology
has made factual
citations,16 may be feeding these concerns.

NET DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PROPORTION THAT THINK

GENERATIVE AI WILL MAKE NEWS MORE OR LESS OF EACH –
37 MARKET AVERAGE
Net score (more – less)

30
29
20
Easier to
16
10 understand Transparent Trustworthy
7 Unbiased Accurate
0
Cheaper Up-to -date -1
to make -8 -8
Looking across countries we find a clear correlation between levels -10
of comfort with automatically generated news and reported usage of -18
-20
AI chatbots. Almost a fifth (18%) of our Indian sample said they were
using chatbots such as ChatGPT and Google Gemini to access news -30
weekly, with comfort levels of 44%. By contrast, usage in the UK was
just 3%, with comfort levels of just 11%. All this suggests that AI news AI_3_news_qualities. In general, do you think that news produced mostly by artificial intelligence,
albeit with some human oversight, is likely to be more or less of each of the following, compared to
is likely toINSTITUTE
REUTERS develop FOR
faster
THEand in potentially
STUDY different
OF JOURNALISM ways in certain
/ EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
news produced entirely by a human journalist? Base: Total sample across 31 markets = 54,638. Note:

Graph 45
Question not asked in Bulgaria, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Indonesia, Kenya, Malaysia,
parts of the world, with media coverage and attitudes to technology Mexico, Morocco, Nigeria, Romania, Peru, Philippines, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey.
playing an important role in shaping opinions.

Whatever publishers do with Gen AI, it is the tools created and

popularised by big tech companies that are likely to have most
WEEKLY USE OF AI CHATBOTS FOR NEWS PLOTTED AGAINST
COMFORT WITH NEWS BEING MADE MOSTLY BY AI WITH impact with consumers, as they increasingly integrate real-time
SOME HUMAN OVERSIGHT – ALL MARKETS news content. Averaged across markets, just 4% say they have
20% accessed the most popular tool ChatGPT for news in the last week,
% weekly
chatbot usage with lower scores for rival services from Google, Meta, Microsoft,
for news and others. The low score for Google’s AI Overviews is perhaps
18% India
surprising
REUTERS given itsFOR
INSTITUTE prominence
THE STUDYat
OFthe top of search
JOURNALISM results,SUMMARY
/ EXECUTIVE but it is GRAPHS
16%
Graph 47
important to remember that audiences may not be aware that
answers are being generated by AI and the tech giant has also been
14% cautious about using the feature around news queries so far.

12% PROPORTION THAT USED EACH AI CHATBOT FOR NEWS IN THE

LAST WEEK – ALL MARKETS
10% Malaysia South Africa
Indonesia ChatGPT 4
Hong Kong
8%
USA
Google Gemini
(incl. AI 2
6% Thailand
overviews)

4% Meta AI
2
(LLaMA)
UK
Finland
2%
% comfort Claude 1
levels
0%
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50%
Perplexity 1
Q3. Which, if any, of the following have you used in the last week as a source of news? Q2_
AIComfortlevel_2024_1. In general, how comfortable or uncomfortable are you with using news
produced in each of the following ways? Mostly by artificial intelligence (AI) with some human oversight. Snapchat
my AI 1
Base: Total sample in each market ≈ 2000. Note: Nigeria and Kenya excluded due to younger samples.

Microsoft
Copilot 1
Delving into the reasons for scepticism, we find that respondents
feel generative AI is likely to make news more (rather than less) 0% 5% 10%
cheap to make (+29 net score) and more up-to-date (+16),
potentially increasing challenges around overload/avoidance, Q10c_2025. When using the internet for news, which of the following, if any, have you used for
news in the last week? Base: Total sample across all markets = 97,055.
even if some feel it could make the news easier to understand

16
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cq5ggew08eyo and https://www.bbc.com/mediacentre/2025/bbc-research-shows-issues-with-answers-from-artificial-intelligence-assistants
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 31

AI-DRIVEN AGGREGATORS INCREASE THEIR REACH THE SMARTPHONE DEEPENS ITS HOLD
ON OUR TIME
One further area to watch is the growing importance of online and
mobile aggregators that already play a dominant role in countries Although the smartphone has been around for almost 20 years,
like Japan, South Korea, and Indonesia. Many of these now use Gen there is no sign that its impact is diminishing. And this in turn
AI technologies to personalise the selection of news content, in the continues to drive changes to how we access the news and the
same way TikTok has done for user-generated content. One example formats we use to consume it. One way of understanding this is
in the United States is Newsbreak, a fast-growing app which has 9% with a question we ask about the first device people come across
weekly reach for its blend of national and international stories. Opera in the morning.
News, another personalised news app, is an important source of
news in Kenya (38% weekly reach) and South Africa (14%). This gives us a picture of habits at a crucial point when people
have traditionally looked to brief themselves for the day ahead.
Apple News, which reaches 14% weekly in the US and 9% in the UK, Taking
REUTERS the UK andFOR
INSTITUTE theTHE
United States
STUDY as examples,
OF JOURNALISM we see how
/ EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
has also deployed Gen AI to summarise news alerts, though it later radio and television have been eclipsed by the convenience of
had to withdraw the feature after well-publicised inaccuracies.17 Gen Graph 49
these powerful personal devices.
AI apps such as Perplexity are developing news alerts and other
personalised features, while Google surfaces personalised news
selections as part of its main app or when you swipe right on an PROPORTION THAT SAY EACH IS THE FIRST WAY THEY COME
Android phone. These links, known within the industry as ‘Google ACROSS NEWS IN THE MORNING (2016–2025) – UK AND USA
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Discover’ are accessed by 27% across markets but more in countries GRAPHS

Graph 48
with a high proportion of Android phones in Latin America and Africa
Over the last decade the smartphone has stolen attention from other
devices and sources
– though the embedded nature of these services makes it hard to
produce accurate numbers through surveys. UNITED KINGDOM
40%TV Radio Smartphone Computer Newspaper
37%

40% 32% (58% with U35s)

37%

32% (58% with U35s)

24%
Chinese-
owned app 20% 20%
24% 18%
uses AI to serve 16%
up personalised 20% 20%
local and 18%
9%
16%
national news. 8% 7%
9% 2%
8% 7%
0%
2016 2019 2022 2025
2%
0%
2016 2019 2022 2025

UNITED STATES

Opera News TV Radio Smartphone Computer Newspaper

aggregates
multiple news 40% 39%
sources with a 36%
focus on Africa. 40% 39%
(57% with U35s)
36%
28%
(57% with U35s)
28%
Our research this year also shows how mobile notifications from 20% 18%
17%
aggregators, often driven by AI, are now one of the main ways of
20% 18%
12%
getting breaking news. This is especially the case in mobile- 17% 10%
majority countries in Africa and Asia, such as Kenya and India. 6% 6%
12%
By contrast, in the UK and other parts of Northern Europe strong 10%
1%
brands are in a better position to connect directly to consumers. 0% 6% 6%
2016 2019 2022 2025
1%
In the UK, notifications from the BBC News app, for example, 0%
Q9c_new2016. 2016
What is the FIRST2019 2022across news in the
way you typically come 2025morning? Base: Total
reach almost half (46%) of those that receive alerts, the sample in each country-year ≈ 2000.
equivalent of around 4 million people – making it one of their
most important channels for digital communication. At the same
time publishers must be careful not to overload consumers, In the United States, shows like Good Morning America have lost
a significant proportion of whom (79%), across markets, either around half their audience in the last decade as smartphones
have never received alerts or have actively disabled them because have become more ubiquitous, according to industry data.18 This
they say they get too many or they are not relevant to their lives. shift, which has been accompanied by an increase in platform
power, has encouraged more personalised news consumption as
For further analysis see section 2.5: Walking the Notification Tightrope:
well as the growing popularity of podcasts and online video.
How to Engage Audiences While Avoiding Overload

17
‘Apple Suspends Error-Strewn AI Generated Alerts’, BBC, 16 Jan. 2025. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cq5ggew08eyo
18
Around 2.6m watched GMA in March 2024 compared with 5.1m in April 2015. https://abcnews.go.com/Press_Release/gma-week-april-06/story?id=30175911
 32 Reuters
REUTERS Institute FOR
INSTITUTE for the Study
THE of Journalism
STUDY | Digital /News
OF JOURNALISM Report 2025
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS

Graph 50

The age splits are also revealing because they show how much
legacy formats such as TV, radio, and print, now depend on over-55s.
Everyone else is not just digital-first but smartphone-first. Even
within top news organisations conversations still focus around the
front page of the website, with formats optimised for reading long
text, but that is no longer how most people want to consume the
news. The shift to smartphone as the anchor device, which has gone
hand in hand with the rise of communication apps, has also made it
harder for any individual publisher app to cut through.

When we ask audiences how they access news on a smartphone over

TV viewing once provided a shared Smartphone consumption is more time, again we see the growing importance of social media, mobile
experience for most Americans personal and fragmented
notifications, and aggregators.
Although the smartphone plays a much bigger role than it did in
every market, we do see significant and surprising differences. PAYING FOR ONLINE NEWS AND THE ROLE
TV news remains the most important starting point in Portugal OF BUNDLING
and Japan,INSTITUTE
REUTERS while in Ireland,
FOR THE Denmark, and South /Africa
STUDY OF JOURNALISM radioSUMMARY
EXECUTIVE news GRAPHS

Graph 51
is a key part of the mix. Meanwhile more than one in ten (11%)
Austrians still start their day with a printed newspaper, even if most
Changing device use and the growing power and changing strategies
of big tech platforms are making it harder than ever for publishers to
of them are over 45. build sustainable businesses. In recent years a key response has been
to reduce dependence on advertising – where big platforms take
PROPORTION THAT SAY EACH IS THE FIRST WAY THEY COME much of the available revenue – and build direct reader payment
ACROSS NEWS IN THE MORNING - SELECTED MARKETS models instead. MailOnline is one scale-based publisher that has
recently added a premium subscription layer, and broadcasters CNN
Smartphone TV News Radio News Newspaper
REUTERS INSTITUTE
and Sky News haveFOR THE STUDY
announced OF JOURNALISM
plans to invest in/exclusive
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
online

11
50 Graph 52
video (and audio) programming for which they plan to charge over
time. But despite this our data continue to show that the vast
Norway 14 majority of audiences remain unwilling to pay for online news.
2
39 PROPORTION THAT HAVE PAID FOR ANY ONLINE NEWS IN THE
United 28 LAST YEAR – SELECTED COUNTRIES
States 6
1 Norway 42

38 Sweden 31
South 27
Switzerland 22 +5pp
Africa 23
2 Australia 22
37 Austria 22 +8pp
United 20
Kingdom 18 Finland 21
2 Ireland 20 +3pp
37
USA 20
18
Ireland
28 Denmark 19
2
Netherlands 17
35
21 Belgium 16
Denmark
20 Canada 14
2
Germany 13
30
34 Poland 13
Portugal
18
France 11
2
29 Spain 10
11 Portugal 10
Austria
28
11 Japan 10 Average of
41% with selected
28 under-35s UK 10 markets
42 50% with
Japan over-55s Italy 9
4
5
0% 18% 25% 50%
0% 25% 50%
Q7a. Have you paid for ONLINE news content, or accessed a paid for ONLINE news service in
Q9c_new2016. What is the FIRST way you typically come across news in the morning? Base: the last year? (This could be a digital subscription, combined digital/print subscription or
Total sample in each country-year ≈ 2000. one-off payment for an article or app or e-edition). Base: Total sample in each country ≈ 2000.
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 33

Across a basket of 20 countries where a significant number of In some markets, some publishers that own both national
publishers are pushing digital subscriptions, less than a fifth (18%) and localINSTITUTE
REUTERS titles have
FORbeen marketing
THE STUDY bundled ‘all
OF JOURNALISM access’ SUMMARY GRAPHS
/ EXECUTIVE
have paid in the last year via an online subscription, membership,
donation, or one-off payment. Payment levels are highest in
Graph 54
subscriptions: +Alt from Amedia now reaches 16% (+6pp) of
Norwegian subscribers with Schibsted’s Full tilgang (All access)
smaller European markets where publishers have a strong market package reaching 8%.
position and platforms have traditionally played a smaller role,
such as Norway (42%) and Sweden (31%) as well as Australia PROPORTION OF NEWS SUBSCRIBERS TAKING UP BUNDLED
(22%) and the United States (20%). In other large markets, such OFFERS (2023–2025) – NORWAY
as Germany (13%), Japan (10%), and the UK (10%), however, it is Amedia (+Alt) Schibsted's Full tilgang
30%
proving hard to persuade more than a small minority to pay and
that task is harder still in many parts of Eastern and Southern
Europe where only a small number of publishers ask for payment 20%

(e.g. Serbia and Greece 7%, and Croatia 6%). 16%

10%
Over the last ten years, ongoing subscription levels across our 8%
6%
basket of 20 countries have more than doubled but they now 4%
look to have hit a ceiling. Publishers have already signed up 0%
2023 2024 2025
many of those prepared to pay and in a tight economic climate
it has been hard to persuade others to do the same. In most
countries, we continue to see a ‘winner takes most’ market, ALT
with upmarket national newspapers scooping up a big
proportion of users. In the United States, for example, the New +Alt is a single subscription service giving
York Times has extended its lead over the Washington Post partly • access to over 100 newspapers from
off the back of its highly successful all-access subscription that all over Norway
includes games, recipes, audio sport, and product reviews. • full access to all podcasts and audio
content in the Untold app
In Germany, local and regional news titles perform relatively well in • live local and national sports in
Direktesport
terms of subscription, a reflection of the importance of regional
identity in this federal system. Consumers in Nordic countries and
the Netherlands are also more likely than the average to pay for a
regional or local online news service, but in the United Kingdom and
Portugal payment is mostly confined to national titles. Meanwhile,
REUTERS
in CanadaINSTITUTE FORaround
and Ireland THE STUDY
halfOF
ofJOURNALISM
subscribers /(50%
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY GRAPHS
and 59% Q7_SUBS_name_2022. You said you have paid a subscription/membership to a digital news
Graph 53
respectively) pay for a news service originating outside the country,
leading to an even tougher market for domestic publishers.
service in the last year … Which of the following did you subscribe to? Base: All that paid for a
digital news subscription/membership in the last year in 2023 = 589, 2024 = 594, 2025 = 667.

PROPORTION OF THOSE PAYING THAT SUBSCRIBE TO EACH – SELECTED COUNTRIES

% subscribe % subscribe
Country Top national titles % paying
to local titles to foreign titles

Norway VG, Aftenposten, E24, Dagbladet 42% 48% 4%

Sweden Dagens Nyheter, Expressen, Svenska Dagbladet, Aftonbladet 31% 46% 8%
Australia The Australian, Herald Sun, The Age, SMH 22% 41% 12%
Switzerland Tages-Anzeiger, NZZ, 24 heures 22% 58% 27%
Austria Krone Pur, Kleine Zeitung, Der Standard 22% 34% 21%
Finland Helsingin Sanomat, Iltalehti Plus, Ilta-Sanomat Extra 21% 41% 6%
United States New York Times, Washington Post, USA Today 20% 20% 21%
Ireland Irish Independent, Irish Times, Irish Examiner, Guardian 20% 8% 59%
Denmark Berlingske, Politiken, Jyllands-Posten, Ekstra Bladet 19% 21% 7%
Netherlands de Volkskrant, AD, De Telegraaf, NRC 17% 45% 7%
Belgium Het Laatste Nieuws, Le Soir, Het Nieuwsblad 16% 17% 7%
Canada New York Times, Toronto Star, Globe and Mail 14% 12% 50%
Poland Gazeta Wyborcza, Newsweek Polska, Rzeczpospolita 13% 10% 34%
Germany Bild, Der Spiegel, Die Zeit, Handelsblatt 13% 27% 10%
France Le Monde, Le Figaro, Mediapart, L’Equipe 11% 23% 8%
Spain El País, El Mundo, La Vanguardia, El Español, El Confidencial 10% 9% 7%
Portugal Expresso, Público, Observador, Correio da Manhã 10% 5% 13%
Japan Nikkei, Asahi Digital, Business Nikkei.com 10% 27% 9%
UK Guardian, Times, Telegraph 10% 8% 17%
Italy Corriere della Sera, La Repubblica, Il Post.it 9% 8% 4%

Q7_SUBS_name_2022. You said you have paid a subscription/membership to a digital news service in the last year … Which of the following did you subscribe to? Base: All that paid for a digital news
subscription/membership in the last year, ranging from Norway = 667 to Italy = 87.
34 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

Alternative versions of these bundles include magazines, These data suggest that it may be possible over time to get more
premium podcasts, and even international titles. At the same customers to pay for news, even in countries where payment levels
time publishers have been building new lifestyle products such are already high. Innovative product development will be key but
as games and cooking as a way of building habit and reducing the challenge for publishers will be building more flexibility and
churn. Others such as the Washington Post and a number of value for different groups without reducing the core editorial
European publications have been experimenting with cheaper proposition – or the average price paid by existing customers.
or more flexible ways to pay, such as day passes or more limited
propositions aimed at younger readers.
LOCAL NEWS UNDER PRESSURE
Around a fifth of survey respondents who are not currently paying
While many upmarket national newspapers can now see a path
in the United States (21%) and Germany (19%) said they might be
to profitability through a mix of digital subscription and diversified
interested in one of
REUTERS INSTITUTE these
FOR options,
THE STUDY OF especially
JOURNALISMthe possibility
/ EXECUTIVE of
SUMMARY GRAPHS
revenue streams, there are deepening concerns about the future
Graph 55
accessing multiple news providers for a reasonable price. But in
all countries the vast majority say that none of these ideas could
of local news. In the United States and much of Europe, local and
regional newspapers have struggled to adapt to the shift to digital
persuade them to pay.
while consumers have found more efficient ways of getting
PROPORTION THAT SAY THEY MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN services they once provided.
BUNDLED/FLEXIBLE PAYMENT FOR ONLINE NEWS – USA
Our report this year shows the extent of this challenge. Although
people repeatedly say in surveys that they are interested in local
would be interested
news, we find that most people across markets think news media
in getting access to
(local television, newspapers, and radio) are only the best source
13% more than one news
provider for a
of news for local politics, local news stories including crime and
traffic accidents, and notices (such as the obituaries of local
reasonable price
people). Platforms or specialist apps tend to be seen as a better
(e.g. local/national)
source for local activities, culture, information about local
One subscription to REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR and
THE STUDY
hundreds of publications transport or weather, buyingOFand
JOURNALISM / EXECUTIVE
selling - all of which SUMMARY
used to GRAPHS
Graph 56
be dominated by local news media. This is part of the reason local
media are struggling in many countries, and why models such as
would be interested
bundling and aggregation offer a potentially more hopeful path.
in a bundle with
11% additional services
(sport, games, etc.)
NET DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PROPORTION WHO THINK
NEWS MEDIA IS BEST SOURCE AND THOSE THAT THINK
along with the news PLATFORMS ARE BEST SOURCE
New York Times All Access News media is still considered best for ....

$4 for one week?

would be interested $7? $10?
7% in paying for a day or The Washington
Post tests “flexible
a week (or an article) Local politics/ Local news Local notices
payments”
government (crime etc.) (obituaries etc.)
(+16) (+13) (+10)

Platforms considered best for ...

of nonpayers might
21% be persuaded by
one of these

Local activities Local services Buying and selling

and culture (e.g. weather, transport locally
information)
would not be
71% interested in any of
(-6) (-11) (-23)
these options
Q3_local_2025_Local. You said you have accessed local news and information about
local[topic] in the last week. Which source, if any, offers the BEST information for you on this
topic? Base: All that accessed local news or information on each topic > 5000. Note: Question not
asked in Chile, Kenya, and Nigeria.

Q_pay_bundling. You say you have not paid for online news in the last year ... which of the
following, if any, would encourage you to pay for online news? Base: All that have not paid for For further analysis see section 2.2: Local News: How Publishers can Still
online news in the last year = 1525. Provide Value in a Platform World
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 35

CONCLUSIONS personality-led news. The task for publishers is how to adjust

to these new realities, to embrace technology where it makes
Over the last decade our report has documented how mobile sense while keeping humans in the loop – and to make the news
devices and powerful tech platforms have upended the news more engaging and personal without losing sight of the values
industry, changing the content people see, the way news is that attract people to their brands in the first place.
presented, and the business models of leading publishers.
Now the challenges for institutional journalism are intensifying
in the form of a platform-enabled alternative media ecosystem,
including podcasters and YouTubers, that is proving engaging
both for audiences – and also for politicians, many of whom no
longer feel they need to submit themselves to journalistic
scrutiny. The growth of video-based networks like YouTube and
TikTok, highlighted again in this year’s report, is encouraging the
trend towards personality-led commentary, much of which is
partisan, and which many worry is squeezing out facts and making
it harder to separate truth from falsehood.

And yet in many countries where press freedom is constrained,

these same trends sometimes also offer hope for greater
diversity of expression and for alternative views to find a voice.
Elsewhere still, creators and influencers are showcasing
innovative and authentic ways to tell stories and build
community in powerful new ways. These approaches have much
to teach legacy media about how to re-engage with younger and
hard-to-reach audiences and to combat selective news
avoidance and news fatigue.

Everywhere there are common challenges around the pace of

change and how to adapt to a digital environment that seems to
become more complex and fragmented every year. Increasing the
uncertainty is the emergence of generative AI as a source of news
for the first time – as tech companies rapidly embed this into their
core services – with younger people in particular using it both for
getting the news and also for checking facts. We already find
much higher use of Gen AI in parts of Asia and Africa, where
comfort with these technologies around news is already much
higher than in Europe, where audiences remain mostly sceptical.
In turn this is affecting the speed at which publishers feel they can
innovate and change. Publishers are looking to use AI technologies
to increase efficiency but also improve the relevance of content
through personalising story selection and formats. None of this
provides a silver bullet but will be part of a wider toolkit that news
organisations hope will enable them to rebuild connection and
provide greater value. In this respect, some publishers are
thinking radically about bundling news with lifestyle content,
repackaging different titles and formats, or licensing content to
AI platforms, but many others continue to struggle to convince
people that their news is worth paying attention to, let alone
paying for.

The danger is that publishers will use automation to cut costs

and chase new AI algorithms. Some of that is already happening
but it is clear that people don’t want more content. They already
feel overloaded. They certainly don’t want sensationalist
headlines optimised for AI aggregators. Our report is very clear
that, across countries, audiences expect the news media to be
more impartial, more accurate, more transparent, and critically
to increase the amount and quality of their original reporting.
Trusted news brands remain the first choice for many when it
comes to checking information, or alerting them to important
breaking news, even if people don’t need them as often as they
once did. It is also striking that advances in AI come at a time
when human connection seems more important than ever,
in terms of other trends highlighted in this report such as
36 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

SECTION 2
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 37

SECTION 2

Further Analysis and

International Comparison
Rasmus Kleis Nielsen
Professor
Department of Communication, University of Copenhagen

Richard Fletcher
Director of Research
Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism

Amy Ross Arguedas

Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism

Craig T. Robertson
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism

Nic Newman
Senior Research Associate
Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism
38 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

2.1 How the Public Checks

Information it Thinks Might
be Wrong
Rasmus Kleis Nielsen

More than half the public across the markets we TRUSTED NEWS OUTLETS ARE THE MOST WIDELY
cover say they are concerned about what is real NAMED WAY TO CHECK
and what is fake when it comes to online news. When asked how they would usually try to verify information they
Even in countries like Denmark, Germany, or the suspect may be false, misleading, or fake, a sizeable minority of our
respondents (13%) say they don’t know. But a large majority of
Netherlands with relatively robust, widely used,
respondents identify at least one and in most cases two or more
and trusted news media, reasonably stable places they might go. The most widely identified are news sources
political institutions, and the rule of law, more that the respondent trusts, official sources (like government
websites), and search engines.
than 40% are worried. In countries such as the
United States, the figure is far higher. So what do Fact-checking websites, which generally do not have anywhere
people do if and when they want to check near the same brand recognition and reach as major news media,
something important in the news online that are still frequently named as a place people say they would go if
and when they want to check potentially problematic information.
they suspect may be false, misleading, or fake? This suggests that, in moments of doubt, they play an important
REUTERS
role INSTITUTE
far beyond FOR
their THE STUDY
generally OF limited
very JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS
routine GRAPHS
audience size,
In this year’s survey, we asked respondents what they would
usually do if and when they decide to check something. Survey
Graph 1
despite the known challenges of getting specific fact-checks in
front of the specific people who have seen a specific identifiably
data, with self-reported data subject to social desirability biases, false claim (Guess et al. 2020).
does not always match actual behaviour. Many of us may
overestimate how often, and how thoroughly, we check things. PROPORTION THAT SAY THEY WOULD GO TO EACH IF THEY
But survey data still provide useful evidence for how people WANTED TO CHECK SOMETHING IMPORTANT IN THE NEWS
think about navigating potentially problematic information ONLINE THAT THEY SUSPECTED MIGHT BE FALSE – ALL
MARKETS
online. And unlike some kinds of data (e.g. behavioural data) that
often lack context, it can help us understand differences in how Where do people go if they want to check?
various parts of the public react when they come across A news source I trust 38
something consequential they suspect may be misinformation Official source (e.g. 35
and identify differences in verification practices both at both the government website)
individual and the country level. Search engine 33

A fact-checking website 25
Understanding who the public turns to is important to
Somebody I know and trust
understand because research has documented, for example, personally 19
that relying on news media tends to help people become more Comments from other users 18
informed and, in some cases, more resilient to misinformation
Wikipedia 17
(Altay et al. 2024) and that citizens tend to heed fact-checking
13% respond
and other forms of factual information, even when it challenges Social media or video network 14 ‘don’t know’
their ideological commitments (Porter and Wood 2024). Other An AI chatbot 9
sources, on the other hand, may not help counter
misinformation – or sometimes even reinforce mistaken beliefs 0% 25% 50%

and misleading narratives. It therefore matters who people turn Q fake verify 1. Imagine you came across something important in the news online that you suspect
to when in doubt. may be false, misleading, or fake. If you decided you wanted to check it, where would you usually go?
Please select all that apply. Base: 97,055.
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 39

The good news from publishers’ point of view is that trusted news Traditional news outlets thus still play an important role when
sources are the most widely named option. The more sobering people turn to search engines, social media, or video platforms to
news is that 62% of respondents do not think of publishers as the check information. But many other sources are as widely relied
first place to turn. When it comes to search engines or social upon when people seek to check information that they suspect
media/video sites, platforms that primarily serve content from might be false, misleading, or fake via digital platforms.
other sources, we asked the respondents who turned to them
which type of source they would mostly be looking for in the results
or feeds presented. VERIFICATION PRACTICES DIFFER
BY AGE AND INCOME
Traditional news outlets and journalists do figure among the
options people many say they would rely on when going via One of the advantages of survey data is that they can help us
platforms – 26% of those who use search highlight news outlets, understand differences across demographic and political groups.
and 30% of those who use social media or video platforms do the Some of the most notable ones are around age, income, and
same. (If we combine respondents who name news sources directly political orientation.
with those who would turn to traditional news sources on
platforms, 43% say they would rely on publishers.) Younger people aged between 18 and 34, for example, often rely on
the same sources as respondents 35 and over, but they are much
But when it comes to platforms, official sources, including more likely than older respondents to say they would rely on
government websites, are more widely named, and a range of other comments from other users, social media, and AI chatbots.
types of sources are at least as widely named as news media. On
search engines, fact-checkers, Wikipedia, and specialist websites or This age group mentions news media, official sources, search
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS
experts, and on social and video platforms, alternative news engines, and fact-checkers about as frequently as older people –
Graph 2
outlets, subject experts, Wikipedia, fact-checkers, and online but they are more likely to mention some of the others. This may
personalities are all nearly as widely named as traditional news suggest
REUTERSboth complementary
INSTITUTE ways
FOR THE STUDY of thinking about
OF JOURNALISM trustGRAPHS
/ ANALYSIS (for
outlets and journalists.
Graph 3
example, horizontally and in terms of affinity as much as in terms
of institutions) and a greater comfort with and routine reliance on
PROPORTION THAT SAY THEY WOULD GO TO EACH ON digital platforms and new technologies.
SEARCH/SOCIAL IF THEY WANTED TO CHECK SOMETHING
IMPORTANT IN THE NEWS ONLINE THAT THEY SUSPECTED
MIGHT BE FALSE – ALL MARKETS PROPORTION THAT SAY THEY WOULD GO TO EACH IF THEY
WANTED TO CHECK SOMETHING IMPORTANT IN THE NEWS
Where do people go if checking information in search? ONLINE THAT THEY SUSPECTED MIGHT BE FALSE – BY AGE
Official source (e.g. GROUP – ALL MARKETS
44
government website)
18–34 35 and over
Specialist website or expert 35

Wikipedia 26 36
A news source I trust
Traditional news outlet/ 39
journalist 26

Fact-checker 25 37
Official source (e.g.
The summary of information government website)
at the top of the search page 19 34

Other/alternative news outlet 17

33
Search engine
Politician 7 33
Online influencer/personality 7
24
A fact-checking website
0% 25% 50% 25
Where do people go if checking information on social media or
19
video networks? Somebody I know and trust
personally 20
Official source (e.g.
government website) 36
Traditional news outlet/ 30 22
journalist Comments from other users
17
Subject expert 29

Other/alternative news outlet 26 18

Wikipedia
Fact-checker 25 17

Online influencer/personality 24 Social media or video 21

network 12
Wikipedia 24

Politician 16 13
An AI chatbot
Other 6 7

0% 25% 50% 0% 25% 50%

Q fake verify 2c/d n. In the previous question you said you would go to a search engine/social media
or video network to check information you suspect may be false, misleading, or fake. Which type of Q fake verify 1. Imagine you came across something important in the news online that you suspect
source would you mostly be looking for in the results? Please select all that apply. Base: All who would may be false, misleading, or fake. If you decided you wanted to check it, where would you usually go?
check using search = 20,407, social = 7972. Please select all that apply. Base: 18-34 = 27,447, Over-35s = 69,608.
40 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS

Graph 5

Education is also correlated with systematic differences. Whereas PROPORTION OF THOSE THAT SAY THEY WOULD GO TO A NEWS
younger people are more likely to rely on sources still regarded with SOURCE IF THEY WANTED TO CHECK SOMETHING IMPORTANT
scepticism by many older people, the difference when we look at IN THE NEWS ONLINE THAT THEY SUSPECTED MIGHT BE FALSE
THAT SAID THEY WOULD GO TO EACH SOURCE
education is of a different kind. Respondents with low levels of
formal education (21% of our total respondents) are, compared to Left Centre Right Don’t know
those with high levels of formal education (33% of respondents),
much less likely to say they would turn to news media, official 44
sources, search engines, or fact-checkers. Compared to those with 41
A news source I trust
high levels of education, they are more likely to say they don’t know 42
where to go, and when they do name somewhere, they are more 24
likely
REUTERSto name onlyFOR
INSTITUTE oneTHE
option.
STUDY The patterns around
OF JOURNALISM income
/ ANALYSIS are
GRAPHS

Graph 4
very similar. Clearly, many of the sources that aim to be
authoritative are not reaching less privileged people as well as they
40

Official source (e.g. 38

serve the more privileged. government website) 35
24
PROPORTION THAT SAY THEY WOULD GO TO EACH IF THEY
WANTED TO CHECK SOMETHING IMPORTANT IN THE NEWS
ONLINE THAT THEY SUSPECTED MIGHT BE FALSE – BY 35
EDUCATION – ALL MARKETS 35
Search engine
Low education High education 36
25
29
A news source I trust 31
46
27
A fact-checking website
Official source (e.g. 25 25
government website) 43 16

28
Search engine 22
37
Somebody I know and trust 20
personally 21
19
A fact-checking website 15
30

18 21
Somebody I know and trust
personally 21 19
Comments from other users
19
17
Comments from other users 15
19
21
14
Wikipedia 18
19 Wikipedia
17

15 11
Social media or video
network 14
17
9 Social media or video 15
An AI chatbot network
10 15
11
0% 25% 50%
11
Q fake verify 1. Imagine you came across something important in the news online that you suspect
9
may be false, misleading, or fake. If you decided you wanted to check it, where would you usually go? An AI chatbot
Please select all that apply. Base: Low education = 18,564, High education = 36,474. 10
5

POLITICAL ORIENTATION AND 6

VERIFICATION PRACTICES 10
Don’t know
9
There are also political differences in who people turn to when
they want to check something. As with income, the differences 29

here are less about a greater preference for specific sources, and
0% 25% 50%
more about a lower propensity to rely on some of the options
named. Specifically, people who identify as being politically on Q fake verify 1. Imagine you came across something important in the news online that you suspect
the right are less likely to say they would go to a fact-checking may be false, misleading, or fake. If you decided you wanted to check it, where would you usually go?
Please select all that apply. Base: Left = 14,330, Centre = 48,177, Right = 13,955, Don’t know = 18,589.
site, official sources like government websites, or Wikipedia.
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 41

As is often the case, differences across the left-right spectrum are not Trust features not only at the individual level. It is also clear when
the only, or even the most pronounced, political differences. The looking across countries. If we plot the percentage of respondents
large number of respondents who answer ‘don’t know’ when we ask in each country against the percentage who say they would turn
them where they stand politically – which often indicates a feeling of to news sources to check something potentially problematic, at
distance, disengagement, or even alienation from conventional one end, a cluster of countries, including e.g. Denmark, Finland,
forms of politics, sometimes referred to as the ‘other divide’ and Sweden, has relatively high trust in news and about half of
(Krupnikov and Ryan 2022) – also tend to report a different set of respondents saying
REUTERS INSTITUTE they
FOR THEwould
STUDYturn to news sources.
OF JOURNALISM At the
/ ANALYSIS other
GRAPHS
verification practices. This group, which at 20% of respondents is
larger than the share of respondents who identify as being politically
Graph 7
end, a number of countries, including e.g. France, Italy, and Spain,
have lower levels of trust and fewer people saying they would turn
on the left (15%) or right (15%), is more than twice as likely to say they to news sources.
don’t know what they would do (29%), and they are much, much less
likely to say they would turn to any of the sources that loom large PROPORTION THAT SAY THEY WOULD GO TO A NEWS
with respondents overall – with the partial exception of means that SOURCE IF THEY WANTED TO CHECK SOMETHING
tend to rely on less institutional, more horizontal forms of possible IMPORTANT IN THE NEWS ONLINE THAT THEY SUSPECTED
MIGHT BE FALSE PLOTTED AGAINST PROPORTION THAT
validation: somebody I know and trust personally, social media or TRUST THE NEWS – ALL MARKETS
video network, and comments from other users.
Trust news
70

TRUST IN NEWS AND HOW WE VERIFY Finland

Trust in news, necessarily subjective as it is, has already been 60

shown to influence what news sources people rely on and how they
process information (Ejaz et al. 2024). Our data suggest it is also Denmark
linked to verification practices. We can document this both at the Sweden
level of individual respondents, across countries, and in terms of 50
which news sources people highlight.

At the individual level, respondents who say they trust most news
40
most of the time are more likely to go directly to news sources to
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS
verify potentially problematic information. They are also more Italy R²=.043
Graph 6
likely to name traditional news as among the sources they would
seek out via search engines or on social and video platforms. 30 Spain France

PROPORTION THAT SAY THEY WOULD GO TO EACH IF THEY

WANTED TO CHECK SOMETHING IMPORTANT IN THE NEWS
ONLINE THAT THEY SUSPECTED MIGHT BE FALSE – BY 20
Turning to news
TRUST IN NEWS – ALL MARKETS
25 30 35 40 45 50 55
Trust Don’t trust
Q fake verify 1. Imagine you came across something important in the news online that you suspect
may be false, misleading, or fake. If you decided you wanted to check it, where would you usually go?
Q6_2016_1. Thinking about news in general, do you agree or disagree with the following statements?
46 - I think you can trust most news most of the time. Base: Total sample in each market ≈ 2000. Note: Total
sample in each market ≈ 2000.
News source I trust
34
In terms of which news sources people turn to, some of our
respondents provided specific examples when asked. The list of
top ten most frequently named brands in a sample of four
32
Traditional news source different countries provides a sense of how people orient
(via search) themselves. Denmark and the United Kingdom have media
19
systems centred around a limited number of national brands, with
generally high trust in the former and somewhat lower trust in
the latter, and Germany and the United States have media
37 systems characterised by a larger number of competing brands
Traditional news source
(via social) and a long history of a more federated structure, one with
24 relatively high trust and one with low trust.

0% 25% 50%

Q fake verify 1. Imagine you came across something important in the news online that you
suspect may be false, misleading, or fake. If you decided you wanted to check it, where would you
usually go? Q_fake_verify_2c/d_n. In the previous question you said you would go to a search
engine/social media or video network to check information you suspect may be false, misleading,
or fake. Which type of source would you mostly be looking for in the results? Base: All that do/do
not trust most news most of the time overall = 39,440/26,270 , who would check using search =
8713/5441, on social media = 3243/2206.
42 Reuters
REUTERS Institute FOR
INSTITUTE for the Study
THE of Journalism
STUDY | Digital /News
OF JOURNALISM ReportGRAPHS
ANALYSIS 2025

Graph 8

PROPORTION OF THOSE THAT SAY THEY WOULD GO TO A NEWS For Denmark and the United Kingdom, three things stand out in
SOURCE IF THEY WANTED TO CHECK SOMETHING IMPORTANT particular – first, the absolutely central role played by public
IN THE NEWS ONLINE THAT THEY SUSPECTED MIGHT BE FALSE service media (DR, TV2 in Denmark and BBC in the UK) and media
THAT SAID THEY WOULD GO TO EACH SOURCE
required to operate with due impartiality (ITV and Sky in the UK).
Denmark % who mentioned each
DR 30
Second, there is the prominent role of upmarket newspaper
TV2 25 brands, which are generally trusted even by those who may not
Politiken 4 sympathise with their editorial line. Third, the absence of popular
brands such as Ekstra Bladet in Denmark and the MailOnline in
Berlingske 4
the UK, which are widely used, but also regarded with some
BBC 3
scepticism by much of the public.
Information 2

CNN 2 The picture in Germany is similar in some respects – public service

media ARD and ZDF are the most frequently named news
Jyllands-Posten 2
sources, upmarket newspapers play a prominent role, and Bild is
Reuters 2
notably absent (despite its significant reach). However, like the
BT 1 media system more broadly, attention is less concentrated, with a
long tail including many local and regional titles.
Germany % who mentioned each
ARD (including Tagesschau) 17
Finally, the situation in the United States is characterised by the
ZDF (including Heute) 11 asymmetric political polarisation that is such a defining feature of
n-tv 5 American politics and media use, with a number of long-established
WELT 3
television news providers, upmarket newspapers, and public
media NPR playing a prominent role – but accompanied by Fox
Der Spiegel 3
News, which is simultaneously widely used (especially on the
FAZ 3 political right) and distrusted by many (in the political centre and
Die ZEIT 2 on the left).
RTL 1

Die Tageszeitung (TAZ) 1

CONCLUSION
Süddeutsche Zeitung 1
Overall, our data help advance our understanding of what people
United Kingdom % who mentioned each
do when they come across something important in the news
BBC 39
online that they suspect may be false, misleading, or fake. While
Guardian 10 there are limitations to self-reported data, this year’s survey
Sky 8 provides important insight into where respondents say they
usually go if and when they decide to check something. Most
ITV 5
people identify two or more sources they might turn to, with
The Times 4
trusted news sources generally one of, or the, most widely named.
Channel 4 3

Reuters 2 Still, many of our respondents do not go to news, and especially

those with lower levels of formal education and those who are
GB News 2
more disengaged from conventional forms of politics, are less
Daily Telegraph 2
likely to say they would turn to news media.
Al Jazeera 1
And official sources – like government sites – are generally about
United States % who mentioned each
as widely relied upon as news sources are. Journalists of course
CNN 11
also check these to verify information, and in many cases and
Fox News 11 contexts it is quite sensible for citizens to do the same. In other
BBC 8 cases, official sources may not be honest brokers (or even sources
NBC/MSNBC 6 of misinformation themselves), and in any case, it is a reminder of
how the role of news media has changed that official sources are
ABC 5
far less reliant on them to connect with citizens.
New York Times 5

NPR 5 Finally, our data show that trust in news is one of the factors
CBS 4
influencing how people navigate potentially problematic
information. Both at the individual level and looking across
Newsmax 3
countries, those who tend to trust news in general are more likely
Washington Post 3 to say they turn to news sources. And, with the exception of the
0% 25% 50% most polarised environments, like the United States, highly and
broadly trusted news sources, especially public service media, are
Q fake verify 2a n. In the previous question you said you would go to a news source you trust to
check information you suspect may be false, misleading, or fake. Which news sources? Please enter important touchstones for where exactly people say they check
up to three. Base: Denmark = 954, Germany = 811, UK = 867, USA = 873. things they are concerned about.
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 43

2.2 Local News: How Publishers

can Still Provide Value in a
Platform World
Richard Fletcher

People often lament that, while local news often WHAT TYPES OF LOCAL NEWS AND
represents the best of what news can and should INFORMATION DO PEOPLE ACCESS?
be, it seems to have suffered more than any other On average, across the 45 markets where we fielded this
part of the industry in recent years. They look to question 19, we see that people most frequently accessed
information about general local news stories (e.g. about crimes,
the USA, where researchers have identified more
accidents) (49%), local activities/culture (e.g. things to do, reviews,
than 3,000 local newspaper closures since 2005 walks, talks) (38%), and local information services (e.g. train/bus
– a trend that shows no signs of slowing down times, weather, movie times) (37%). Just one-third (32%) said they
accessed information about local politics/government in the last
(Metzger 2024).
week, despite this often being held up as the most important
function of local news media. Information about local sports and
But one reason the decline in the USA is so large is that local
clubs (20%), things to buy/sell locally (including services, e.g.
media used to occupy a position of unusual size and strength. In
plumbers, electricians) (26%), and local notices (e.g. births, deaths,
some regions, such as parts of Asia, local news media have never
marriages) (19%) were accessed by between one-fifth and
enjoyed this status, and in others, such as in the Nordic
one-quarter. Although none of these individual types of local
countries, some local publishers like Amedia have weathered
information were accessed
REUTERS INSTITUTE by more
FOR THE STUDY than half on
OF JOURNALISM average,GRAPHS
/ ANALYSIS 81% said
the storm of digital transition, and now operate successful
businesses based in part on digital reader revenue. Graph 9
that they had accessed at least one of these. Though, of course,
this still means that around 20% do not access any news
information about their local area on a regular basis.
While the same broad trends in news use – such as the growth of
online news use and the rise of digital platforms – are evident
PROPORTION THAT ACCESSED NEWS OR INFORMATION ABOUT
almost everywhere, they are unfolding at different rates, EACH IN THE LAST WEEK – AVERAGE OF 45 MARKETS
creating large national variation. It is therefore worth
Local news stories
continually examining the position of local news media in (e.g. crimes, accidents, etc.) 49
today’s information ecosystem – and crucially, to what extent its
Local activities/culture
trajectory maps on to what is happening at the national level, (e.g. things to do, reviews, 38
and how all this varies by country. walks, talks, etc.)

Local information services 37

Local news media used to have a de facto monopoly over the (e.g. train/bus times, weather,
provision of certain types of local information, but people now movie times, etc.)
32
have a range of different sources to choose from – including Local politics/government
digital platforms. It is therefore important for local publishers to Things to buy/sell locally 26
understand the information needs of audiences, and whether (including services, e.g.
they will turn to news media to fulfil them. plumbers, electricians, etc.)
20
Local sports/clubs
To better understand this, we asked a series of questions about Local notices
19
local news in this year’s survey. The first of these simply asked (e.g. births, deaths, marriages)
people what kinds of local information people have accessed in
0% 25% 50%
the last week. Although it was not possible to ask about every
type of local information people might have used, we focused on
Q local 2025 n. Thinking about the types of information you may need about the area where you
broad categories that covered the types that we thought would live … Which, if any, of the following types of local information have you accessed in the last week?
Please select all that apply. Base: 90,995. Note: Question not asked in Chile, Kenya, and Nigeria.
be the most widely sought after.

19
The local questions referred to in this chapter were asked in all markets except Chile, Kenya, and Nigeria.
44 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

Unsurprisingly, accessing local news and information is more the rank order on average, we do not see large differences.
widespread in some countries than in others. In Finland and Germany, Ireland, and Austria are among those countries with the
Sweden, for example, 88% and 87% respectively accessed at biggest rank order difference. This is partly because people are
least one of the information types listed earlier, but in Belgium more likely to access local notices here, suggesting that
the figure is just 73%, and lower still in Japan at 68%. These information about births, deaths, and marriages is more
country differences are also reflected in the figures for each important in some markets – but even so we see that the same
individual information type. For example, on average across basic pattern closely resembles the average. Local news access is
markets, the proportion that accessed local news stories less common in Slovakia and Morocco, but even here we do not
(e.g. about crimes, accidents) in the last week was 49%, but this see radically different patterns of local information access.
rises to 68% in Finland and 69% in Sweden, but just 46% in People, then, seem to have similar types of local information
Japan and 41% in Belgium. needs across countries – even if there is some variation in how
widespread those needs are.
These differences can be partly explained by interest in local news.
If we plot national levels of interest in local news (against interest in WHAT SOURCES DO PEOPLE THINK ARE BEST
news generally) we see that interest varies a lot by market, ranging
FOR LOCAL NEWS AND INFORMATION?
from 60% (‘very’ or ‘extremely’ interested) in South Africa and 55%
in Finland, down to just 21% in Taiwan and 20% in South Korea. It is Although most people still access news and information about
also worth noting that interest in local news is correlated with their local area on a weekly basis, local publishers are no longer
interest in news in general – which suggests that people interested the only INSTITUTE
source forFOR
people to choose from. According to our data,
REUTERS THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS
in one tend to be interested in the other. We can also see that most many people rely on search engines and social media platforms
datapoints appear below the line of equality, indicating that Graph 11
for local information – and in some cases, they are now seen as
REUTERS in
interest INSTITUTE FORis
local news THE STUDY OF
typically JOURNALISM
lower / ANALYSIS
than interest GRAPHS
in news in the best sources for that information.
Graph 10
general. This means that in some cases local news access may be
more influenced by changes to unintentional news consumption
PROPORTION THAT ACCESSED NEWS OR INFORMATION
habits, as personal motivation is less important. ABOUT EACH IN THE LAST WEEK
PROPORTION INTERESTED IN LOCAL NEWS PLOTTED Even countries with the largest rank order difference from the
AGAINST PROPORTION INTERESTED IN NEWS IN GENERAL – average look similar to it.
45 MARKETS Average
of 45
Markets above the line are more interested in local news than markets
news in general. Most markets are less interested in local news
than news in general. Local news 49% 52% 52% 33% 32% 44%

Local
Local activities/
38% 33% 37% 39% 30% 32%
culture
60% South Africa
Finland
Local services 37% 32% 44% 36% 35% 33%

Canada USA Local politics/

France 32% 36% 32% 22% 33% 38%
government
Average
40%
Local buying/
26% 19% 30% 24% 32% 23%
selling
UK
Slovakia
Local sports/
20% 17% 25% 19% 29% 20%
clubs

20% Taiwan
South Korea
Local notices 19% 23% 33% 26% 14% 27%

Q2 local 2025 n. Thinking about the types of information you may need about the area where you
live … Which, if any, of the following types of local information have you accessed in the last week?
Please select all that apply. Base: Total sample in each country ≈ 2000.
Overall
0%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
In our survey, those that said they had accessed each type of
Q1c. How interested, if at all, would you say you are in news? Q1 local 2025. How interested, if at all,
information in the last week were asked a follow-up question:
are you in local news about the area where you live? Base: Total sample in each market ≈ 2000. ‘Which source, if any, offers the best information for you on this
topic?’ Respondents could select from a range of different
Although the overall extent of local news and information access sources, including different types of local news media (local
varies by country, the relative popularity of each information type newspaper, radio, or television), different platforms (search
is fairly consistent. In other words, when we take the rank order of engines or social media), a specialised app or website, or people
the information types in individual countries, and compare this to they know personally.
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 45

People’s preferences for different sources of local news and This highlights how platforms have now come to be seen as the
information vary by country and by topic. For example, local TV best source for certain types of local information in some parts
(in the USA) and local newspapers (in Germany and the UK) of the world. If we average across all markets and look at the
are still seen as the best source of information about local politics net difference between the proportion that think news media
among those that consume it. However, if we look instead at local
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS
(local television, newspapers, and radio) are the best source
activities and culture, we see that consumers in the US and the UK and the proportion who instead say platforms (social media and
Graph 12
now see social media as the best source – though local newspapers search engines) we see that local news media is seen as better
are still preferred in Germany. for local politics (+16), news (+13) and notices (+10). However,
platforms tend to be seen as a better source for local activities
PROPORTION THAT THINK EACH IS THE BEST SOURCE FOR and culture (-6), local services (-11), and local buying and selling
DIFFERENT TYPES OF LOCAL NEWS AND INFORMATION (-23) – all of which used to be dominated by local news media.

Local politics and government

In general, platforms are now seen as the best sources of what we
In the US local television is seen as the best source of information about might think of as more commoditised information. While coverage
local politics, but in Germany and the UK it is local newspapers.
of newsworthy events and local politics can vary in quality and
depth, it’s harder to see how you can have better quality or more
in-depth information
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR about a road
THE STUDY closure or a/diverted
OF JOURNALISM ANALYSISbus route.
GRAPHS

Local television 35% 11% 12% Graph 13

In that sense, any difference in quality primarily exists in how it is
delivered and presented, and how convenient it is to access –
something that platforms excel at.
Social media 18% 19% 9%

NET DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE PROPORTION THAT

Local THINK THE NEWS MEDIA ARE THE BEST SOURCE AND THE
16% 23% 39%
newspaper PROPORTION THAT THINK PLATFORMS ARE THE BEST
SOURCE – AVERAGE OF 45 MARKETS
Local radio 8% 8% 18% People tend to think that the news media is better for local politics,
notices, and news. People tend to think platforms are better for local
activities, services, and buying/selling.
People I know
7% 14% 7%
personally
30
People think news media is
better for these
Search engines 5% 6% 10% 20
+16
10 +13 Local Local
Specialised app +10 activities/ Local buying/
4% 7% 2% +1 culture services selling
or website
0
Local Local Local Local -6
politics/ news notices sports/ -11
-10 government clubs
Local activities and culture
In the US and the UK social media is seen as better for local activities, but -20 -23
in Germany it is still local newspapers.
People think platforms are
-30 better for these

Q3_local_2025_Local. You said you have accessed local news and information about local
Social media 33% 31% 11% [topic] in the last week. Which source, if any, offers the BEST information for you on this topic?
Base: All that accessed local news or information on each topic > 5000. Note: Question not asked in
Chile, Kenya, and Nigeria.

Local television 16% 8% 5%

It is important to understand, however, that this pattern varies

Local
newspaper
13% 16% 34% enormously by market. In some countries, such as Norway,
Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, and the Netherlands, local news
media are still seen as the best sources of most types of local
Search engines 12% 12% 12%
information, with the occasional exception of local services and
local buying and selling (in Sweden, for example).
People I know
8% 13% 14%
personally
Other countries – the UK being a good example – tend to show
Specialised app this same split between a preference for news media when it
6% 10% 12%
or website comes to local news and politics, but a preference for search and
social platforms for information about local activities, services,
Local radio 5% 5% 6% and buying and selling. At the same time, there are also examples
of countries – like the Czech Republic – where there is no clear
preference for either platforms or the news media for most types
Q3_local_2025_Local_politics_government/activities_culture. You said you have accessed local of local information.
news and information about local politics/government/activities/culture in the last week. Which
source, if any, offers the BEST information for you on this topic? Please select one option. Base: All that
accessed local news or information on politics and government/activities and culture in USA = 279/241, UK =
144/229, Germany = 249/219.
46 Reuters
REUTERS Institute FOR
INSTITUTE for the Study
THE of Journalism
STUDY | Digital /News
OF JOURNALISM ReportGRAPHS
ANALYSIS 2025

Graph 14

NET DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE PROPORTION THAT THINK THE NEWS MEDIA ARE THE BEST SOURCE AND THE PROPORTION
THAT THINK PLATFORMS ARE THE BEST SOURCE
People tend to think the news media are the best source

Norway Germany Sweden Netherlands Switzerland

50 50 50 50 50

0 0 0 0 0

-50 -50 -50 -50 -50

Mixed views

UK Australia Greece Argentina Czech Republic

50 50 50 50 50

0 0 0 0 0

-50 -50 -50 -50 -50

People tend to think platforms are the best source

Morocco Malaysia Indonesia Taiwan Thailand

50 50 50 50 50

0 0 0 0 0

-50 -50 -50 -50 -50

Local politics/government
Local news
Local notices
Local sports/clubs
Local activities/culture
Local services
Local buying/selling

Local politics/government
Local news
Local notices
Local sports/clubs
Local activities/culture
Local services
Local buying/selling

Local politics/government
Local news
Local notices
Local sports/clubs
Local activities/culture
Local services
Local buying/selling

Local politics/government
Local news
Local notices
Local sports/clubs
Local activities/culture
Local services
Local buying/selling

Local politics/government
Local news
Local notices
Local sports/clubs
Local activities/culture
Local services
Local buying/selling
Q3_local_2025_Local. You said you have accessed local news and information about local [topic] in the last week. Which source, if any, offers the BEST information for you on this topic? Base: All
that accessed local news or information on each topic, average ranging from local notices = 128 to local news = 417.

There are some markets in the data where platforms are seen as support for local media, different technological infrastructure,
the best source for all of the types of local news and information and are home to individuals and organisations that have different
that we asked about in the survey – including information about responses to change – all of which can combine to produce a near
local politics and government. Examples of these markets include infinite number of different outcomes.
Morocco, Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan, and Thailand. Although
some people in these markets do think local newspapers, radio, One thing that is clear, though, is that the shifts in preferences we
and television are the best source of information for specific topics, see at the local level are part of broader shifts we have seen for
in each case the proportion that say either search engines or social news overall. Researchers in platform studies use the term
media are better is considerably larger. However, as in any analysis ‘platformisation’ to refer to the extent to which platforms – search
of the role of platforms in the information ecosystem, it must be engines, social networks, video networks, messaging apps, and
acknowledged that in many cases the information served up by more recently, generative AI – have become central to media
platforms comes from the news media, and in that sense platforms environments, and the consequences this has for cultural
are both a gateway to the news media and a source of information production and consumption. When it comes to news, our previous
in their own right. research has shown that, although almost all internet users use
platforms, there are large country differences in the proportion that
use them to access news specifically (Nielsen and Fletcher 2023).
WHY ARE SOME MARKETS MORE DEPENDENT
ON PLATFORMS? If we plot people’s preference for search and social platforms for
local information (measured as the average difference between the
Understanding exactly how and why each market has taken a proportion who prefer news media for local and platforms across
particular path is a complex task. In general, the emergence of each information type) against the proportion who say that either
these quite distinct patterns has probably been shaped by the search or social is their main way of getting news online, we see a
historic strength of the news media in different markets, and how clear correlation. In countries where people prefer to use search
resilient they have been in the face of digital disruption. At the and social for news online, and thus platformisation is high (e.g.
same time, countries have, for example, different levels of state Thailand), people tend to say platforms are the best source of local
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 47

Graph 15

PROPORTION THAT SAY NEWS MEDIA ARE THE BEST SOURCE FOR LOCAL NEWS AND INFORMATION PLOTTED AGAINST THE
PROPORTION WHOSE MAIN WAY OF GETTING ONLINE NEWS IS VIA SEARCH/SOCIAL
40
Prefers news media for local
information

Finland
20

Where news platformisation

is low, people prefer news USA
media for local information

UK
0
Where news platformisation
is high, people prefer platforms
for local information

-20

-40 Thailand

Main way of getting online

news is search/social

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Q10a_new2017_rc. Which of these was the **MAIN** way in which you came across news in the last week? Q3_local_2025_Local. You said you have accessed local news and information about
local [topic] in the last week. Which source, if any, offers the BEST information for you on this topic? Base: All that used an online gateway in the last week in each market ≈ 1800 and all that accessed
local news or information on any topic in each market ≈ 1650.

information. Conversely, in countries where platformisation is low recognises the centrality of platforms to the information ecosystem
and people still prefer to go directly to publisher’s websites and more broadly. Building a direct connection with audiences is always
apps (e.g. Finland), people are more likely to say that the news challenging, but especially so if there was only a weak connection
media are the best source for local information. between publishers and their audiences to begin with.

Given that previous research suggests that news platformisation is In countries where platformisation is low, it will be important for
stronger in markets where the newspaper industry was historically local publishers to maintain that direct connection with their
weaker (Nielsen and Fletcher 2023), it seems likely that the audiences. Fortunately, local publishers are particularly well-placed
preference for platforms for local information is also strongest in to do this, given that they enjoy higher than average public trust,
countries where there was only a weak newspaper industry to and have close community ties. For the majority of local publishers
begin with. In this sense, we are seeing a kind of path dependency – such as those in the USA and UK, where people prefer the news
in how patterns of local news and information access are changing. media for some types of local news, but turn to platforms for more
commoditised information – the task is to identify where the
opportunities lie, to understand what types of information people
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR PUBLISHERS? will come to you for, and to prioritise those.

One overarching takeaway is that the trends we see shaping news

This is of course easier said than done for many legacy publishers
consumption more broadly often also affect local news in similar
wedded to specific business models and ways of working, but the
ways. Sometimes the effect at the local level might be more
success of newer entrants like Mill Media in the UK shows what’s
pronounced, sometimes less so, but the direction of the effect is
possible with a different approach. Our research from five years
usually the same. Local news is not special in that sense.
ago described in more detail how a range of local publishers
across different countries had already adopted a strategy of
But given that these big trends are clearly playing out differently in
investing in high-quality, unique, digital content that audiences
different countries, the response from local publishers should also
value and are willing to pay for (Jenkins 2020). This was
depend on the nature of the market they find themselves in. Local
summarised by one executive as ‘publish less, but publish better’
publishers in countries where platforms are the preferred source for
– and it remains good advice.
local information of all types will likely benefit from a strategy that
48 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

2.3 How Audiences Think

about News Personalisation
in the AI Era
Amy Ross Arguedas

As newsrooms continue to experiment with AI COMFORT WITH PERSONALISED SELECTION

technologies, many are setting their sights on ACROSS DOMAINS
tools to help tackle declining news engagement Automated personalisation has become an increasingly
and growing news avoidance, especially among common feature of digital life, yet the nature, utility, and
implications of relying on personalised content differ
younger audiences, while also cultivating loyalty
considerably depending on the kinds of content being
among those who already rely on them. While personalised. To contextualise audience comfort with the
personalisation is not new to the news industry, personalisation of news selection, we first asked survey
respondents in 27 markets about their comfort using websites
where many have implemented recommendation
or apps with automated selection across different kinds of
systems and tailored newsletters for some time websites and apps.
(e.g. Kunert and Thurman 2019), recent
developments in AI have drastically changed the We find that close to half of respondents are comfortable with
news personalisation, but comfort is low compared to other
kinds of personalisation that are potentially domains. Respondents are most comfortable with automated
feasible at scale.20 selection when it comes to weather, where people tend to be
more interested in places they are or will be. Majorities are also
In addition to enabling further personalisation in the selection of comfortable with the automated selection of music and online
news, generative AI now makes it technically possible to television, which many are accustomed to on platforms such as
personalise news formats according to the needs and preferences Netflix and Spotify, and where people tend to see benefits of
of individual users, while also enabling entirely new possibilities, recommendations based on genres they like and may
such as generative AI chatbots that can answer news-related appreciate being freed from the burden of having to choose.
questions. To the extent that these tools work reliably in practice, Comfort is lower for news, where important stories of the day
they may enable organisations to deliver news in ways that are can be about almost any topic. Comfort is lowest on social
more accessible, convenient, and relevant to individual users. media and video feeds (e.g. YouTube, TikTok), where some may
However, achieving this will partly depend on how audiences feel have had negative experiences or encountered more public
about using personalised news in the first place, in addition to debate on the matter. However, younger people – who are
how open they are to the use of AI for this purpose, in a context heavier users of platforms like TikTok, where algorithmic
where many remain sceptical about these technologies. recommendation is integral to the user experience – tend to be
much more comfortable with automated selection on social
I begin this chapter first by exploring audience attitudes towards media (54% among under-35s vs 38% among those 35+).
the personalisation of content selection across different kinds of Across all domains, comfort tends to be lower in much of
websites and apps, showing how comfort with algorithmic Europe (e.g. Western and Northern Europe) compared to other
recommendation in news compares to other domains. Then I parts of the world (e.g. Latin America, Asia, Africa).
move onto AI-driven personalisation, first showcasing examples
of how newsrooms are already experimenting with these
technologies, before examining public interest in different types
of AI-driven news personalisation.

20
Some in industry circles differentiate personalisation (understood as the automated selection of news content based on user data) from customisation (referring to when users can
choose or configure their own news experiences). In this chapter, we use personalisation more broadly to describe different scenarios that enable the tailoring of news to the needs and
preferences of users, regardless of whether it is automated or selected by users.
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS Reuters
REUTERS InstituteFOR
INSTITUTE for the
THEStudy of Journalism
STUDY | Digital/ News
OF JOURNALISM Report
ANALYSIS 2025 49
GRAPHS

Graph 16 Graph 17

PROPORTION COMFORTABLE USING WEBSITES/APPS FOR REASONS PEOPLE ARE COMFORTABLE VS UNCOMFORTABLE
EACH WITH CONTENT AUTOMATICALLY SELECTED BASED ON WITH PERSONALISED NEWS SELECTION
YOUR PREVIOUS PREFERENCES - AVERAGE OF 27 MARKETS
Comfortable with personalised news selection
Weather 63 28 9

Music 57 30 13
More relevant news
Online television and movies 55 31 14

Sports 50 34 15

News 49 34 18 Saves time and effort

Social media/video feeds 43 34 23

0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

Less biased than humans
Comfortable Neither/nor Uncomfortable

online_personalisation. How comfortable or uncomfortable do you feel with using websites and
apps where content has been automatically selected for you based on your previous preferences (i.e.
highly personalised) when it comes to each of the following? Base: Weather = 50,415, Music = 46,062, More diverse topics and viewpoints
Online television and movies = 46,611, Sports = 42,164, News = 50,525, Social media/video feeds = 49,902.
Note: Question asked in 27 markets. Those who responded ‘Don’t know/I don’t use’ were excluded.

This begs the question of what beliefs drive people’s attitudes

Uncomfortable with personalised news selection
towards personalised news selection. An analysis of open
comments from a subset of countries shows that respondents
who are comfortable with personalised news selection see four Irrelevant or low-quality news
key benefits. First, many feel personalisation ensures they receive
news that is more relevant to their lives, for example, ‘highlighting
information about my city, my province’ (F, 34, Argentina).
Relatedly, some emphasise the greater efficiency of personalised Fear of missing out
news selection, which helps bypass topics that are uninteresting
or which they intentionally avoid: ‘It always knows … the relevant
information I need, instead of wasting time viewing everything’ More biased or manipulative
(M, 24, US). A smaller number of respondents express greater
trust in news selection performed by algorithms, which they view
as ‘less biased than human editors, as they are programmed to
make selections based on data rather than personal opinions or Invasive of privacy
preferences’ (M, 26, US). Lastly, some believe algorithmic
selection delivers more varied topics and viewpoints, serving
‘articles that I wouldn’t have seen myself that are relevant’ (F, 47, Loss of control
UK). Across all four themes, participants think these technologies
work well and, as a result, benefit them.

The reasons underpinning discomfort with personalised selection Some of these concerns may be assuaged through communication
vary more, with some opposing these technologies rooted in a and/or design, clarifying for users what personalisation consists of
belief they do a poor job, while others are uncomfortable precisely and any measures taken to minimise potential risks (e.g.
because they think they are effective but may have negative approaches in which big stories of the day will remain prominent
outcomes, and others yet express concerns that go beyond the regardless of individual preferences). However, the broader
quality of the recommendations. For instance, some feel these question of how enthusiastically to lean into audience preferences
technologies are bad at predicting their interests, delivering remains important to the extent that it risks undermining editorial
content that is ‘useless or false’ (F, 57, Argentina), or as one values and public interest, a concern that is especially salient for
participant put it, ‘because the algorithm is always wrong about me’ public service media (e.g. Sehl and Eder 2023).
(F, 61, US). However, others worry that, in adhering to their personal
interests, algorithmic selection may lead them to miss out on
important issues, preferring instead ‘a general overview rather than GROWING INTEREST IN AI PERSONALISATION
only specific pre-selected areas of knowledge’ (F, 76, UK). Likewise, IN THE NEWS INDUSTRY
some believe personalised selection leads to more biased (or worse
yet, manipulated) information, which some associate with echo While personalised news selection has been around for some time,
chambers and polarisation: ‘I worry that the algorithmic filtering it is increasingly AI powered. Of the media leaders surveyed for the
might block out important stories and may also be intentionally Reuters Institute’s latest Journalism, Media and Technology Trends and
manipulated’ (M, 34, Argentina). Beyond news content itself, many Predictions report, 80% said AI would be very or somewhat important
express concerns about the ‘invasion of privacy’ (M, 60, UK) by in 2025 for news distribution and recommendation, such as
surveillance technologies – ’Big brother is watching’ (M, 52, US) – or personalised homepages and alerts (Newman and Cherubini
simply oppose personalised selection grounded in a desire to make 2025). Media leaders are increasingly setting their sights on more
up their own minds about news and what to consume: ‘I don’t like ambitious AI personalisation initiatives that account not only for
news to be imposed on or chosen for me’ (M, 56, Argentina). news selection but also the formats in which content is offered.
50 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

As Deborah Turness, chief executive of BBC News, said in her Other publishers are introducing entirely new products. The
announcement to staff about the creation of a new department that Independent (UK) has launched a new digital news service called
will use AI to deepen personalisation: ‘We must become ruthlessly Bulletin – advertised as ‘News for Seriously Busy People’ – which
focused on understanding our audience needs, on delivering the kind uses Google AI tools to create article summaries overseen by
of journalism and content they want, in the places they want it, journalists.22 Others such as the Washington Post (US)23 and the
designed and produced in the shape that they enjoy it.’ 21 Financial Times (UK)24 have launched generative AI tools that can
answer user questions based on their own corpus of articles. Rather
Publishers are already experimenting with AI to personalise news than modifying news story formats, these tools provide an
formats. The BBC has been trialling OpenAI’s speech-to-text tool advanced search function that can understand complex queries.
Whisper to add subtitles and transcripts to some items published
on BBC Sounds. Others, such as India Today and the Miami Herald,
have been testing the opposite – AI technologies that allow users AUDIENCE INTEREST IN AI-DRIVEN NEWS
to turn text articles into audio, using an AI-generated voice. PERSONALISATION
Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet has introduced ‘quick versions’
of news stories produced with AI on top of extended versions of When we ask audiences about their interest in different options for
articles. And Argentina’s Clarín newspaper now offers users both adapting news to their individual needs with AI, we find relatively
a text-to-audio
REUTERS option
INSTITUTE FOR and UalterAI,
THE STUDY a tool offering
OF JOURNALISM a rangeGRAPHS
/ ANALYSIS of low interest across the board – below 30% for any single option,
which may be shaped by low familiarity with these kinds of tools.
Graph 18
supplementary analyses ranging from key bullet points and
highlighted quotes, to key figures, a glossary, and a list of We see a greater appetite for alternatives that make news
Frequently Asked Questions. consumption more efficient and relevant: article summaries and
translations of news articles are at the top of the list, followed by
EXAMPLES OF AI USED TO ADAPT NEWS FORMATS AND customised news homepages and recommendations or alerts.
DELIVERY Meanwhile, interest is lowest in modality conversion options such
as text-to-audio. This contrasts with the high interest reported
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS
among industry leaders for AI format conversion options, where
Graph 19
text-to-audio tops the list of AI initiatives planned for 2025, perhaps
because it is seen as relatively easy, cheap, and uncontroversial to
implement (Newman and Cherubini 2025).

PROPORTION INTERESTED IN EACH AI PERSONALISATION

OPTION VS PROPORTION OF MEDIA LEADERS PLANNING
EACH IN 2025 - ALL MARKETS

Article summarisation 70%

27 planning this

65%
Article translation 24 planning this

Story recommendations or
21
news alerts

Miami Herald’s text-to-audio option Clarín’s supplementary analyses with Customised news
UalterAI 21
homepage

56%
AI chatbots 18 planning this

Language for different 21%

17 planning this
reading levels

75%
Text to audio (or audio to text) 15 planning this

Text to video (or video to text) 14

None of these/Don’t know 34

0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

Personalised format Personalised selection Other

AI_personalisation. The news industry is considering using AI to better adapt news content to
people’s individual needs. Which of the following options, if any, would you be interested in using?
The Washington Post’s tool that answers Aftonbladet’s summary bullets Please select all that apply. Base: Total sample across all markets = 97,055. Note: Data on initiatives
queries planned by media leaders from ‘Journalism, Media and Technology Trends and Predictions 2025’.

21
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2025/mar/06/bbc-news-ai-artificial-intelligence-department-personalised-content
22
https://www.independentadvertising.com/the-independent-launches-bulletin-a-new-brand-delivering-essential-news-briefings-for-seriously-busy-people/
23
https://www.washingtonpost.com/ask-the-post-ai/
24
https://ask.ft.com
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 51

Relative interest in different types of AI personalisation also varies There is also the question of how effective such tools are likely to
somewhat across markets. While article summarisation – one of be among people disengaged from news. Our data show that
the more widely rolled out generative AI features – tends to be of interest in AI personalisation is considerably lower among those
high interest everywhere, translation more often tops the list in least interested in news and those who avoid news more
linguistically unique European countries with relatively small frequently. That said, small pockets of news avoiders may be more
populations, such as Finland and Hungary, perhaps signalling an amenable to certain types of personalisation. For example, those
appetite to be able to access news content from outside their who avoid
REUTERS news because
INSTITUTE FOR THE they
STUDYfind it hard to understand
OF JOURNALISM express
/ ANALYSIS GRAPHS
countries. Likewise, interest in the ability to adapt news text to
different reading levels often ranks higher in countries with lower
Graph 21
higher interest across the board relative to news avoiders in
general, with the largest gap when it comes to the use of AI to
literacy rates or reading proficiency relative to countries with adapt news for different reading levels.
higher literacy or reading proficiency levels. In India, Kenya,
Nigeria, and the Philippines, the option to adapt news to different PROPORTION INTERESTED IN EACH AI PERSONALISATION
reading
REUTERSlevels ranks
INSTITUTE inTHE
FOR theSTUDY
top three, and in India
OF JOURNALISM is the most
/ ANALYSIS GRAPHS OPTION BY AGE GROUP - ALL MARKETS

Graph 20
popular option. This compares to countries like Finland, Norway,
and Japan where adapting the language in news articles for
Language for different reading levels

different reading levels ranks in the bottom three. 30

PROPORTION INTERESTED IN EACH AI PERSONALISATION

OPTION - SELECTED MARKETS 24%
22%
20
19%

15%
Language for different 12%
35% 27% 10% 12% 10
reading levels

Article summarisation 33% 31% 21% 30%

0
18–24 25–34 35–44 45–54 55+

Article translation 32% 26% 26% 17% AI chatbots

30
Story recommendations or
30% 29% 19% 17%
news alerts 27%

24%
20
AI chatbots 30% 25% 11% 16% 19%

15%

Customised news 10 12%

28% 22% 16% 13%
homepage

Text to video (or video to text) 27% 22% 7% 7% 0

18–24 25–34 35–44 45–54 55+

Text to audio (or audio to text) 26% 19% 11% 7% Customised news homepage

30

AI_personalisation. The news industry is considering using AI to better adapt news content
to people’s individual needs. Which of the following options, if any, would you be interested in
using? Please select all that apply. Base: Total sample in each country ≈ 2000.
22% 22%
20 21%
20%
19%
More broadly, respondents tend to express more enthusiasm in
countries where comfort with the use of AI in journalism is higher,
such as India and Thailand, whereas we see much lower interest 10
in countries with low AI comfort, such as the UK. Likewise,
younger groups, who tend to be more comfortable with AI in
general, show greater interest in the use of AI for personalising 0
formats, such as adapting articles to different reading levels, as 18–24 25–34 35–44 45–54 55+
well as chatbots. This suggests that news organisations may want
to focus these kinds of AI innovation on younger audiences. AI_personalisation. The news industry is considering using AI to better adapt news content
to people’s individual needs. Which of the following options, if any, would you be interested in
Likewise, respondents who are less keen on reading news show using? Please select all that apply. Base: 18-24 = 10,556, 25-34 = 16,891, 35-44 = 17,659, 45-54 =
greater interest in options to convert text to audio or text to video. 16,901, 55+ = 35,048.
52 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

CONCLUSION
Audiences are broadly sceptical about news personalisation in ways
they aren’t about other areas of digital life. Our research finds
greater interest in the use of AI to personalise news formats,
particularly those that make news easier or quicker to consume,
followed by personalised news selection, where some already worry
about algorithmic recommendation, including fears about missing
out on important stories. Reported interest does not necessarily
mean people will use options, just as lack of interest doesn’t
necessarily mean they won’t (and it is possible some respondents
don’t understand what each would entail or look like in practice).
However, there is a risk of overestimating public enthusiasm
around AI-driven personalisation or prioritising tools audiences are
less interested in. It is also possible, given relatively low appetite for
any single option, that offering a palette of options for audiences to
choose from may be necessary in order to add value for a critical
mass of users.

We find evidence that interest in AI personalisation is shaped both

by comfort with the use of AI in journalism and the potential these
technologies show in satisfying audience needs or preferences. In
light of this, the rollout of AI personalisation may play out
differently from one country to the next, with greater openness and
enthusiasm in markets such as Thailand, India, and much of Africa,
where attitudes towards the use of AI in news are more favourable,
compared to Northern and Western Europe, where audiences are
considerably more sceptical about AI. Likewise, news organisations
will need to evaluate possible strategies and potential trade-offs of
serving these options to audiences who have more of an appetite
for them (e.g. younger people) without being off-putting for more
hesitant users.

Given that AI can power such different kinds of personalisation,

communicating clearly what these technologies consist of may
help offer reassurance in light of some of the concerns identified in
our open responses, especially regarding personalised selection. It
is also worth keeping in mind the desire for self-determination
expressed by many respondents in the open responses. While the
uptake of customisation tends to be limited, offering audiences
options to exercise some control over personalisation might help
placate concerns, especially in the early stages of AI adoption.
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 53

2.4 The Changing Landscape

for News Podcasts across
Countries
Craig T. Robertson

REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS

Graph 22

News brands have, in recent years, leaned into MOST-MENTIONED NEWS PODCASTS AMONG NEWS PODCAST
LISTENERS - SELECTED COUNTRIES
podcasts – and they aren’t alone. Both Donald
Trump and Kamala Harris made appearances on 15% access a news podcast weekly USA

popular podcasts in the lead-up to the 2024 US Top shows Top producers
1 The Daily 1 NPR
election, following the example of French President
2 Up First 2 New York Times
Emmanuel Macron in 2023 seeking to reach 3 The Joe Rogan Experience 3 BBC
younger people.25 This younger age profile of 4 BBC Global News Podcast

listeners is part of the appeal for news brands, 5 MeidasTouch Podcast

6 Pod Save America
along with the strong connection that many people
More personality-based, higher
have to their favourite podcasts. levels of video. YouTube is main
access point.
Yet news podcast listening also remains a somewhat niche
activity, ranging from 15% of people listening weekly in the US 7% access a news podcast weekly UK
to 3% in Japan. Very few people (2% across 20 markets we have
been tracking over time) say podcasts are their main source of Top shows Top producers

news, with news podcasts instead playing a complementary role 1 The Rest is Politics 1 Goalhanger
in people’s news diets. But the younger, richer, educated profile of 2 The News Agents 2 Global Media & Entertainment
regular news podcast listeners is attractive, so effort has been put 3 PoliticsJOE Podcast 3 BBC
in to reach them. 4 Americast
5 Newscast
Against this backdrop, in this chapter we look at the different 6 Pod Save The UK
ways in which podcasts are developing across countries,
Some personality-based, some video.
including how the definition of ‘podcasting’ itself is blurring. Spotify and BBC Sounds are main
This chapter focuses on three markets where we conducted access points.
additional in-depth qualitative research, supplementing our
survey data. Interviews were done with 50 people in the US, 11% access a news podcast weekly Norway
UK, and Norway in order to add further context and
Top shows Top producers
understanding to a still-developing media format.
1 Oppdatert 1 NRK
2 Forklart 2 Aftenposten
WHAT ARE PEOPLE LISTENING TO, AND HOW? 3 Aftenpodden 3 VG
4 Kommentert
To get a broad picture of what the news podcast landscape 5 Politisk Kvarter
looks like in different countries, we used an open-ended survey 6 Dagsnytt 18
question to ask our respondents to name the news podcasts
Less personality-based, more audio.
they listen to most regularly. After coding and analysing the NRK Radio and Spotify are main
responses, we can see interesting differences across the US, access points.
UK, and Norway.
Q1_podcast_open. You said earlier that you have accessed a news-related podcast in the last week. Can you
name those that you listen to most regularly? Base: News podcast listeners in USA = 304, UK = 153, Norway = 214.

25
https://edition.cnn.com/2024/03/16/media/france-hugodecrypte-YouTube-profile-travers-intl-cmd/index.html
54 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

In the US, where the news podcast market is most developed, just below Spotify (41%). BBC Sounds proves far more popular
the list of most-mentioned podcasts is topped by shows from with older people (48% of those 45+) compared to younger
well-established brands, as well as shows from independent people (30% of those under 45), while the reverse is true for
social-first producers with opinionated hosts. Industry leader Spotify, following the pattern in the US.
The Daily (New York Times) tops the list of most named news
podcasts, followed by NPR’s Up First. The BBC’s Global News The BBC’s Newscast and Americast appear among the most
Podcast also features in the top six shows – and the BBC is mentioned shows, as does the PoliticsJOE Podcast. A key story in
among the most frequently cited producers. the UK is also the success of a political analysis show – The Rest is
Politics – from an independent producer (Goalhanger),
Most notably, beyond mainstream news brands, The Joe Rogan challenging the dominance of the BBC in the audio space. The
Experience features among the most-named news podcasts, Rest is Politics and News Agents (Global Media) are the two most
despite some US interviewees disagreeing about it being a news frequently cited shows, hosted by former journalists and/or
podcast at all, given the wide range of topics covered. political insiders who provide analysis of the news. Interviewees
Nevertheless, the show does regularly feature prominent guests mention the appeal of these shows being their deep-dive
who generate news stories from their appearances. It’s among a approach, providing perspective on the day’s news. Rounding out
crop of right-leaning podcasts which have become highly the top six is Pod Save the UK, a spinoff show from its popular
influential in the US political sphere.26 Also featured in the top American counterpart.
six most-mentioned shows in the US are the left-leaning
MeidasTouch Podcast and Pod Save America, showing how The Norwegian market, meanwhile, is heavily concentrated, with
podcasts from smaller independent producers can break shows from the country’s public broadcaster NRK taking up a third of
through in a highly competitive market. These shows are filmed, all mentions. The most popular platform is the public service
with many people watching on YouTube – the most popular broadcaster app NRK Radio (63% of podcast listeners say they use
platform for podcasts in the country, with 50% of US podcast it), reflecting the brand’s popularity in the country. The age disparity
consumers using it (though we don’t know precisely how many in listenership is similar to the UK: 72% of those aged 45+ use NRK
people are watching versus listening). In the US, YouTube is Radio for podcasts, while 58% of under 45s do. Interestingly, the app
consistently popular across age groups as an access point to remains popular with those aged 25-34 (67%) and 35-44 (60%).
podcasts, with Spotify being far more popular amongst younger
people (50% among 18–34s) when compared to older people Being a smaller market, this concentration of attention is not
(24% of over-55s). unexpected, as a small number of news brands take up most news
consumption in the country. The top six most-mentioned podcasts
The UK market is similarly a mix of shows from well-established all come from NRK and newspaper Aftenposten. Tabloid newspaper
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS
brands and newer entrants, though strong partisan opinion is VG is also a popular producer of podcasts. The Norwegian market
Graph 23
less foregrounded than in the US. BBC Sounds is a popular doesn’t strongly feature social-first or creator-led shows, instead
platform to access podcasts, with 37% of podcast listeners using it, being a brand-first audio market.

PROPORTION OF NEWS PODCAST LISTENERS WHO ACCESS PODCASTS VIA EACH PLATFORM - SELECTED COUNTRIES
Public service app

Norway UK USA

NRK Radio 63% Spotify 41% YouTube 50%

Spotify 45% BBC Sounds 37% Spotify 39%

YouTube 23% YouTube 33% Apple Podcasts 26%

Apple Podcasts 22% Apple Podcasts 21% Amazon Music 18%

Website or app Website or app Website or app

of other news 19% of other news 11% of other news 15%
publisher/broadcaster publisher/broadcaster publisher/broadcaster

Podimo 16% Audible 8% NPR app or website 13%

Podme 15% Amazon Music 7% Pandora 13%

POD2. Which of the following apps or websites do you mainly use to find and play podcasts? Please select all that apply. Base: News podcast listeners in USA = 304, UK = 153, Norway = 214.

26
https://www.mediamatters.org/google/right-dominates-online-media-ecosystem-seeping-sports-comedy-and-other-supposedly
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 55

THE RISE OF VIDEO PODCASTS to just want information and expressed less desire to watch the
host. Some genres of news podcasts, such as narrative storytelling,
The popularity of podcasts on platforms like YouTube in the US are also poorly suited to video unless much more production effort
signals a shift in the definition of ‘podcasting’. Podcasts are no is put in, at which point respondents said they could just watch TV
longer just an audio experience, with many now being filmed and news instead.
pitched
REUTERSas video-first.
INSTITUTE FORJoe
THERogan
STUDY podcast episodes
OF JOURNALISM regularly
/ ANALYSIS get
GRAPHS

Graph 24
over 3 million views on YouTube, with clips from the show often
going viral.
With news I’m only interested in the facts or the story
and not invested in the particular content creator.
Whereas with other genres I enjoy visualising the
content … as I’m invested in the individual content
creator or the guests.
Male, 21, UK

Lastly, the how and why of news podcast listening contributes to

the diminished appeal of video, since one of the unique values of
news podcasts mentioned by interviewees is a podcast’s ability to
slot into spaces where other forms of news consumption are not
practical or possible, such as when driving, cooking, or at the gym.

You don’t have to have your eyes fixed on anything. It’s

convenient, you can still get on with other things while
it’s playing in the background.
Female, 45, UK

WHAT ARE THE OPPORTUNITIES FOR NEWS

PUBLISHERS LOOKING TO MONETISE PODCASTS?
The way that podcasts are embedded in people’s daily routines – and
the strong connection many people have to their favourite shows
– makes them a unique format and an appealing prospect for news
publishers. Interviewees mention how different types of news
podcasts fulfil particular needs throughout the day, such as
informing them about the world’s events on the commute to work,
learning something new during their lunch break, or being
entertained by a lively chat show in the afternoon or evening. So does
Examples of video podcasts: The Joe Rogan Experience, Pod Save the UK, The MeidasTouch Podcast. this habitual listening offer news brands a path to monetisation?

While the overall market is currently small, regular listeners are

What does this mean for news brands? The rise of video podcasts
highly interested in news (71% of news podcast listeners are
has seen some brands experimenting with filming their shows
extremely or very interested in news, compared to 45% of
(e.g. Hard Fork from the New York Times), since podcasts are
non-podcast listeners). Willingness to pay for news podcasts is also
relatively easy to film and video also offers a marketing opportunity REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS
relatively higher than when we typically ask this type of question:
– videos can be clipped and highlight moments posted to platforms
like TikTok, Instagram, and X (Monkcom et al. 2025). Graph 25
46% of news podcast listeners in the US say they would be
prepared to pay a reasonable price for news-related podcasts they
like, with the figure being 39% in the UK and 41% in Norway.
So should news brands embrace video podcasts, if they haven’t
already? Our interviewees in the US, UK, and Norway suggest PROPORTION OF NEWS PODCAST LISTENERS WHO SAY
caution for several key reasons. One drawback is that while hosts THEY WOULD BE PREPARED TO PAY A REASONABLE
are often cited as a key reason for people listening to non-news PRICE FOR NEWS-RELATED PODCASTS THAT THEY LIKE -
podcasts (personality-led and entertainment shows), driving SELECTED COUNTRIES
engagement and sometimes watching rather than listening, the
importance of hosts in the news space is more limited for our USA 46% 19% 32%
interviewees, particularly in the UK and Norway. Audiences in these
markets put much more emphasis on impartial deep analysis
UK 39% 17% 42%
(getting information) than opinionated hosts. The appeal of hosts is
more evident in the US, where the market is characterised more
strongly by partisan personalities, but this doesn’t necessarily Norway 41% 20% 35%
translate into a desire to watch.

Agree Neither/nor Don’t know Disagree

Another drawback is the diminished add-on value. For non-news
podcasts, such as comedy and entertainment, respondents Q2_podcast_2025_2. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following
mention wanting to see facial expressions, reactions from guests, statements? I would be prepared to pay a reasonable price for news-related podcasts that I
like. Base: News podcast listeners in USA = 304, UK = 153, Norway = 214.
and even what people are wearing. In the news space, people tend
56 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

In terms of monetisation strategies, ads and sponsorships have I’m very deeply invested in the Candace Owens
typically been a first port of call, and our interviewees in the US, podcast. I really like her material, what she covers,
UK, and Norway say they are comfortable with this. But news is and I’m not going to hear that anywhere else, so I
outranked by comedy and sports podcasts when it comes to the would only probably pay for hers.
share of ad revenue27 and the amount of ad money going into Female, 35, US
podcasts is a fraction of the overall spend on audio (Monkcom et al.
2025). So publishers have been approaching the economics of Motivations to pay for podcasts, though, are highly dependent.
podcasts more widely, using them as a way to engender loyalty and As we’ve found in other research (see Newman and Robertson
encourage membership/subscription to the wider brand. Many 2023), audiences are somewhat stubborn when it comes to paying
publishers have included podcasts as part of their wider package of for any type of news content – and podcasts don’t escape this. Yet
offerings, alongside news articles, games, and recipes. Another interviewees suggested this could be overcome in the right context.
bundling strategy has been to pitch collections of shows.
Regarding other monetisation options pitched to interviewees,
The New York Times, for instance, focus their subscription pitch there was some interest in paying for one-off episodes (rather than
on the bundle of 40+ shows they have, leveraging the popularity an ongoing subscription which makes you feel ‘locked in’) if they
of hosts, as well as offering access to podcast archives and early offered something interesting like a prominent guest.
access to episodes from Serial Productions. The Economist also
advertises its bundle of shows with Podcasts+, including ‘all our There was no appetite among interviewees for access to back
weekly podcasts on global affairs, business, China, America, catalogues, largely due to news having a shelf life. Donations were
technology and more’. Meanwhile, Schibsted Media in Norway appealing for smaller independent shows and live podcast events
offers premium podcast content through its app Podme, where were of interest to a few interviewees, though they did mention the
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS
they emphasise exclusivity and ad-free listening. A subscription potential cost and time investment as drawbacks.
Graph 26
provides access to shows from brands like VG and Aftenposten,
as well as Podme original content.
CONCLUSION
The pitch from New York Times audio A lot of news publishers have been leaning into podcasts in
recent years, seeking to leverage the deep connection that
people have with their favourite shows. The news podcast market
is still relatively niche and fragmented, but the loyal audiences
many podcasts have presents a path to potential membership
and monetisation.

At the present moment, ad-supported shows that showcase the

brand and encourage loyalty are most appealing to audiences,
but the bulk of advertising money is likely to go to only a handful
of the most popular shows and the overall pie remains relatively
These larger brands benefit from having a catalogue of shows small. Direct monetisation through podcast subscriptions is a
to offer – something that smaller brands don’t necessarily have. harder pitch with paywalling likely to be successful for only a few
But this doesn’t mean standalone podcasts can’t monetise directly. brands. The popularity of some hosts can also drive willingness to
It depends on the offering. pay, but popularity on the scale of Joe Rogan can’t be engineered
out of thin air. Freemium and value-added models are more likely
One of the most common themes associated with podcasts – and to succeed with other (smaller) publishers because podcasts are
particularly news podcasts that people might consider paying for not often people’s primary source of news, but a supplementary
– is depth (see also Monkcom et al. 2025). This is made clear in the they seek out to add depth and understanding. This is where the
survey responses, where 73% of listeners say podcasts help them value of news podcasts is and where memberships with add-on
understand issues more deeply than other types of media.28 In our benefits might appeal.
interviews, people associated podcast listening with learning,
understanding, and gaining insights. Having high-quality, Whether news podcasts are a fit with video is still an open
personally valuable information might be worth paying to access. question, with the most successful video-first podcasts tending
to be in comedy and entertainment, rather than news. It is
If a podcast offered unique investigative journalism,
possible that audience behaviours could shift as video podcasts
expert-led discussions, or deep analysis beyond
become more normalised, but their fit with the news genre is not
standard news coverage, I might consider paying for it.
obvious and there is a risk of overinvesting in an increasingly
Male, 23, UK
crowded space.
Uniqueness and exclusivity are also mentioned as possible
reasons to pay, though the idea of putting existing free content The role that news podcasts play in people’s lives is a common
behind a paywall is off-putting to many. Interviewees are more throughline in our research and this is perhaps the most important
open to exclusive add-on content (which can be paid for on a focus. At present, it’s the why of podcast listening – depth, insight,
one-off basis or as part of a membership) that doesn’t take away analysis, understanding – and meeting people in the right moments
from the main free offering. In the US context, in particular, throughout the day.
uniqueness is also tied to hosts, with some open to paying for
content from their favourite personalities.

27
https://www.iab.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/IAB_US_Podcast_Advertising_Revenue_Study_FY2023_May_2024.pdf
28
Across a basket of 20 markets where podcasts are well-understood as a format.
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 57

2.5 Walking the Notification

Tightrope: How to Engage
Audiences While Avoiding
45%

40%

35%

Overload
30%

25%

20%

Nic Newman 15%

10%

5%

0%
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025

As publishers look to reduce their dependence on lockscreen has intensified. In some countries (such as Germany)
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS
we find that usage is relatively flat. At the same time, there is
platforms, many are increasingly looking at ways to
build more direct and meaningful relationships with
Graph 28
even higher use of mobile-related alerts in many parts of the
Global South where smartphones are the dominant access point
audiences. Mobile alerts, which are closely linked to to the internet.
their news websites and apps, have proved to be one PROPORTION THAT RECEIVED NEWS ALERTS OR
of the most effective ways of doing this, with weekly NOTIFICATIONS IN THE LAST WEEK - SELECTED COUNTRIES

usage of news notifications having tripled in many 30%

countries over the last decade. Publishers say that

news alerts drive habit, which in turn increases brand 25%

loyalty, and ultimately propensity to pay for news.

20%
But at the same time, many consumers say they are becoming
overwhelmed by mobile notifications of all kinds – from news
15%
aggregators as well as publishers – as well as sports scores,
calendar requests, messaging groups, and social media
interactions. Faced with this challenge, the companies behind 10%

mobile operating systems such as iOS and Android have started

to summarise and prioritise notifications– often using AI – but 5%
this in turn threatens to reduce the direct link between news
publishers and audiences. In this chapter we explore consumer 0%
attitudes to news alerts across eight countries representing 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
different media systems.29 What kinds of people engage or USA UK Germany All markets
disengage with these notifications and why? Which brands are
benefiting most and how can publishers strike a balance
between keeping users updated without unduly irritating or 42% 32% 31% 23%
distracting them?

Kenya India S Africa USA

USAGE OF MOBILE NEWS ALERTS 20% 18% 17% 10%
Mobile news alerts have grown significantly over the last
decade, alongside our increasing reliance on smartphones and
apps. Weekly use of alerts in the United States, for example, has Brazil UK Japan Germany
grown from 6% to 23% since 2014 and from 3% to 18% in the
Q10. Thinking about how you got news online (via computer, mobile or any device) in the last
UK. But most of this growth happened before 2017 and has week, which were the ways in which you came across news stories? Base: Total sample in each
country-year ≈ 2000. Note: Samples in Kenya, India, and South Africa represent younger, English
slowed considerably as the battle for attention on the speaking online populations so should not be considered representative of national populations.

29
USA, UK, Germany, Japan, Brazil, India, Kenya, and South Africa.
58 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS

Graph 30

ALERTS REMAIN JUST ONE OF MANY GATEWAYS PROPORTION THAT RECEIVED NEWS ALERTS IN THE LAST
TO NEWS WEEK – BY INTEREST/FREQUENCY SEGMENTATION –
SELECTED COUNTRIES
In terms of consumer usage, gateways such as search (45% weekly News lovers Daily briefers Casual users
use) and social media (43%) are much more important in terms of
overall numbers – and for attracting new users from a publisher
perspective – but much of the resulting traffic often leads to 36

shallow engagement. By contrast, notifications, along with email

newsletters, are two of the mechanisms that publishers use to 24

drive deeper connection with existing users. Notifications are

United States 11
features of app software design that remind people of the value of
the service and aim to increase frequency of direct usage while
reducing dependence on big platforms.
33
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS
Across countries, around a fifth (21%) say they use news alerts
Graph 29
weekly as a starting point for their news journey, with one in ten 18
(9%) saying this is their main gateway.
United Kingdom 11

PROPORTION THAT USED EACH NEWS GATEWAY IN THE LAST

WEEK – ALL MARKETS
17

Search 45
9

Brings Germany
new 3
users,
Social media/ even
video networks 43
if less 0% 10% 20% 30% 40%
loyal

Q10. Thinking about how you got news online (via computer, mobile or any device) in the
last week, which were the ways in which you came across news stories? Please select all
Direct 33 that apply. Base: News lovers/Daily briefers/Casual users in UK = 322/1115/639, USA =
(website/app) 504/1001/548, Germany = 472/1170/405. Note: Segments defined by different levels of interest in
news and frequency of news use.

Mobile alerts 21 Mobile news alerts work well across all age groups and genders,
Drives whereas email newsletters, which have also proved very effective
more
frequent for many publishers in building loyalty, tend to perform much
use from better with older groups.
existing
Aggregators 16 users

WHICH BRANDS ARE MOST FREQUENTLY

MENTIONED WHEN IT COMES TO MOBILE
Email 15 ALERTS?
In our survey we asked respondents which news organisations – or
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% aggregators – they most often received alerts from. In general, we
find that news brands that are well trusted and have a reputation
Q10. Thinking about how you got news online (via computer, mobile or any device) in the last for breaking news perform best. In many countries these are brands
week, which were the ways in which you came across news stories? Please select all that apply.
Base: 97,055. with a broadcast legacy, especially public broadcasters.

BBC News has the most widely installed news app30 in the United
Given that alerts are focused on existing users, it is not surprising to Kingdom and the brand was mentioned by almost half (46%) of
find that those receiving news alerts tend to be disproportionately those respondents who get news alerts, around three times as
drawn from those with high interest in the news and greater many as second-placed Sky News. This is the equivalent of around
frequency of use (a group we define as ‘news lovers’) compared to 4% of the adult population, suggesting that almost 4 million
more casual users. This is because access requires people, in most people in the UK will be notified every time the BBC sends an
cases, to be interested enough to download a specific news app in alert, which would make it one of the most powerful digital
the first place and give permission for notifications to be sent. channels in its armoury.
Exceptions to this come with pre-installed apps such as Apple and
Google News where news alerts are often part of the set-up on a They alert me to big news stories unfolding
new phone. In this way, some platform-driven alerts have a better throughout the day, even when I’m too busy to sit and
chance of reaching audiences with lower interest in news and lower read or watch the news.
levels of education. Female, 34, UK

30
Ipsos Iris official app chart shows 12.6 million UK users in October 2024. https://pressgazette.co.uk/media-audience-and-business-data/media_metrics/most-popular-news-apps-in-
the-uk-in-october-strong-growth-at-money-saving-expert-and-gb-news/
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 59

Aggregators Google and Apple also play a significant role in the UK In Germany, usage is split across multiple news brands, headed
market, with many respondents complaining that this can lead to by 24-hour-news channel n-tv. Public broadcaster ARD’s
them getting multiple alerts on the same subject. Tagesschau brand also performs strongly with its alerts package.
In Japan we find a different picture again with aggregators such
In the United States we find a more fragmented landscape, with as Yahoo! News, Line, and Smart News collectively reaching a
broadcast brands CNN and Fox News near the top of the list along significant proportion of those receiving notifications. This
with the New York Times, but it is striking to see how more of the reflects the weak online position of most traditional news
alerts come from aggregator or platform brands. In addition to organisations (and their apps) in a market where access is
Google and Apple News, Yahoo! retains a strong position in the US, dominated by platform aggregators. The only exception is the
while Newsbreak is a relatively new app that has aggressively used earthquake and tsunami disaster notification service run by
personalised alerts to drive growth. Many respondents stressed the public broadcaster NHK, which is installed on many people’s
convenience of how the news now ‘comes to them’ in a timely way, phones, as well as NHK’s own news app.
supplementing existing usage patterns.
Aggregators also play a much bigger role in Africa where the
mobile internet tends to dominate. In Kenya, Opera News, a
They bring information regarding news events
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS popular AI-driven personalised app not related to the Opera
happening in real-time [even] when I’m not
Graph 31 watching news.
browser, is a major player, while digital-born outlet Tuko.co.ke
heads the list along with legacy news outlet Citizen and titles
Male, 57, USA from the Nation Media Group. Kenyans also get regular news
alerts from social and video networks such as Facebook, X, and
PROPORTION OF NEWS ALERT USERS THAT REGULARLY YouTube, which are
REUTERS INSTITUTE widely
FOR usedOF
THE STUDY forJOURNALISM
news more/ ANALYSIS
generally. Opera
GRAPHS
RECEIVE AN ALERT FROM EACH BRAND News is an important aggregator in South Africa too, but brands
SELECTED COUNTRIES
Graph 32
with a reputation for breaking news such as News24 and eNCA
also perform strongly.
UNITED KINGDOM UNITED STATES

News Brand News Brand Opera News – AI-driven

Aggregator platform Aggregator platform
personalised new app

BBC News 46 CNN 16

Sky News 16 Google News 13

Fox News 11
Google News 8
BBC News 10
Guardian 8
New York Times 10
Apple News 6
Yahoo! News 8
GB News 3
Apple News 7
Telegraph 3 Newsbreak 7
Sun 1 Washington Post 6

0% 25% 50% 0% 25% 50%

GERMANY JAPAN

News Brand News Brand

Aggregator platform Aggregator platform

n-tv 13 Yahoo! News 12 NHK Disaster Alert App

ARD/Tagesschau 9
Line News 7
Google News 8
Earthquake 6
Focus 6 Disaster (NHK)

Welt 6 Smart News 6

Bild 5 Google News 5

Upday 5 NHK (public 4
broadcaster)
FAZ 5
Nikkei 2
ZDF/Heute 4
Spiegel 3 Gunosy 1

0% 25% 50% 0% 25% 50%

Q_ALERTS_2. You said you have received one or more news alerts/notifications in the last week.
Enter the name of the source or sources that you most regularly get them from (e.g. news brand or
other source). Base: All that received news alerts in the last week in UK = 380, USA = 479, Germany =
199, Japan = 341.
60 Reuters
REUTERS Institute FOR
INSTITUTE for the Study
THE of Journalism
STUDY | Digital /News
OF JOURNALISM ReportGRAPHS
ANALYSIS 2025 REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS

Graph 33 Graph 35

PROPORTION OF NEWS ALERT USERS THAT REGULARLY PROPORTION OF NEWS ALERT USERS THAT REGULARLY
RECEIVE AN ALERT FROM EACH BRAND RECEIVE AN ALERT FROM EACH BRAND
SELECTED COUNTRIES SELECTED COUNTRIES

KENYA SOUTH AFRICA BRAZIL INDIA

News Brand News Brand News Brand News Brand

Aggregator platform Aggregator platform Aggregator platform Aggregator platform

Tuko.co.ke 39 News24 31 Globo/G1 9 Google News 11

Google News 6 YouTube 10
Opera News 26 Google News 19
UOL 6 Times of India 9
Citizen 15 eNCA 11
YouTube 5 Facebook 7
NTV/ 13 10
Facebook Facebook 4 NDTV 5
Daily Nation
Phoenix 12 SABC 9 Instagram 4 BBC News 5

Google News 12 BBC News 8 R7 3 Hindustan Times 4

CNN/CNN Brasil 2 Dainik Bhaskar 4
X 10 Opera News/Mini 7
Terra 2 Instagram 4
Facebook 8 CNN 6
X 2 The Hindu 4
BBC News 7 YouTube 6 TikTok 2 Daily Hunt 3

0% 25% 50% 0% 25% 50% 0% 25% 50% 0% 25% 50%

REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS

Graph 34
Q_ALERTS_2. You said you have received one or more news alerts/notifications in the last week.
Enter the name of the source or sources that you most regularly get them from (e.g. news brand or
Q_ALERTS_2. You said you have received one or more news alerts/notifications in the last week.
Enter the name of the source or sources that you most regularly get them from (e.g. news brand or
other source). Base: All that received news alerts in the last week in Kenya = 834, South Africa = 633. other source).
REUTERS Base: All thatFOR
INSTITUTE received
THEnews alerts inOF
STUDY theJOURNALISM
last week in Brazil/=ANALYSIS
400, India = 652.
GRAPHS

Graph 36
Finally, we can look at two large TOO MANY ALERTS CAN
markets, Brazil and India, where PUT PEOPLE OFF
we also find a significant
proportion of alerts being While mobile alerts are a good way
generated from tech platforms of keeping audiences up-to-date
such as Google, Facebook, they are not universally loved. The
YouTube, and Instagram. vast majority of our survey 43%
This reflects the heavy use of respondents (79% in aggregate) say of those
platform-based consumption in they do not currently get any news who don’t get
these countries with algorithms alerts during an average week. This news alerts
generating automated alerts could be because they are not say they have
based on previous usage of sufficiently interested in actively disabled
particular subjects. downloading a news app in the first them
place or because they have actively
In Brazil, major web portals such turned off alerts because they found
as G1 (Globo), UOL, and R7 have them too annoying or distracting.
also built a reputation for
breaking news, with alerts billed Across countries, more than four in ten (43%) of those that do not
as a key reason to download their get alerts say they actively disabled them – either because they feel
apps. In India, The Times of India, they get too many or because they are not useful: ‘They annoyed
NDTV, and BBC News are some of me so I turned them off’, says one respondent, while others were
the most widely used services more concerned about the depressing nature of the news itself.
along with popular mobile ‘I turned off all my news apps and sites after Trump was elected’,
aggregator apps such as InShorts says one liberal respondent from the United States, while another
and Daily Hunt. added ‘I have switched off notifications again because it’s
emotionally distressing’. There is a clear link here with more
general news avoidance trends – with those who say they ‘often
avoid’ the news less likely to sign up in the first place and more
likely to disable them later.

But it’s not just about overload. Respondents also found alerts
could be frustrating in other ways: ‘Sometimes the headlines are
misleading when you select the article. Sometimes you have to
pay to view the content, especially on Apple News’, says one UK
respondent (M, 42).
REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM / ANALYSIS GRAPHS Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 61

Graph 37

PROPORTION THAT SAID EACH WAS WHY THEY DID NOT GET It may be that in some countries where news remains highly
NEWS ALERTS - AVERAGE OF 28 MARKETS prized, there is a tolerance for a higher number of alerts but tech
companies that run mobile operating systems such as Apple and
Google have routinely warned publishers about sending too many
alerts. Apple has started to group messages together and even to
summarise duplicative ones using artificial intelligence (AI),
19% 15% 10% though this feature was withdrawn after a number of mistakes.
too many disabled when not useful Despite this, publishers worry that platforms could further
downloading the app enough restrict or mediate their notifications in the future.

Publishers are extremely conscious of the tightrope they are CONCLUSION

walking when sending news alerts. Most have strict limits on the
number they send each day and clear criteria about the type of In this chapter we find that, across countries, news alerts are used
alerts as well as the best time to send them. The Times of London, mainly by those who already have a high level of interest in the
for example, sends no more than four each day, conscious that news. They keep those users engaged and bring them back more
more frequent alerts can lead to a spike of those uninstalling the frequently to an app. Most people use news alerts in combination
app. The Financial Times sends a number of general news alerts to with other forms of media, not as a replacement.
all and then
REUTERS for those
INSTITUTE FOR that opt in,OFa JOURNALISM
THE STUDY personalised notification
/ ANALYSIS at
GRAPHS

Graph 38
around 5.00 pm each day based on a subscriber’s particular
interests, as well as a morning briefing alert. At the weekend there
From an audience perspective, alerts are an easy way to keep
up-to-date, as well as to widen perspectives beyond breaking news.
is promotion of longer reads and relaxed features. They are not valued, however, when they use oversensationalised
headlines (clickbait) or when publishers send too many alerts that
SOME ALERTS CARRY ADDITIONAL CONTEXT SUCH AS do not feel relevant.
READING TIME, PICTURES, AND GRAPHICAL ELEMENTS
In some countries, such as the UK, people seek out alerts from
well-trusted news brands that have a strong reputation for
breaking news and a track record for accuracy. This could give
incumbent brands a significant advantage, but elsewhere
breaking news alerts can come from a wide variety of sources
including social media, video networks, and aggregator apps.
These alerts tend to be personalised and often offer a much
broader range of stories, even if some of the sources may be less
reliable.

Competition on the lockscreen is becoming more intense, with

news jostling for attention with updates from multiple social
networks, games, and entertainment apps. In this high-choice
environment news organisations will need to be even smarter in
Analysis shows that BBC News in the UK will typically send up to how and when they use alerts to keep users engaged without
ten alerts each day.31 These mostly deal with breaking stories of causing them to unsubscribe. Audiences want more personalised
national or international importance, with many containing a link and relevant content but they also don’t want to miss out on
to a live video feed or live blog to encourage further consumption. important national and international news. Some users just want
At times the BBC also uses its notification service to promote an breaking news, others are happy to be alerted about lighter
exclusive feature, investigation, or piece of analysis, though this stories or specialist news. Squaring these various circles will
wider remit is not always welcomed: ‘I value news alerts that are require a deeper understanding of these very different audience
truly breaking news rather than just everyday stories seeking needs – and then varying the content, the format, and the time of
clicks’, says
REUTERS one UK
INSTITUTE survey
FOR respondent.
THE STUDY But not/ all
OF JOURNALISM publishers
ANALYSIS are
GRAPHS
day accordingly. Providing users with ways to vary the number
Graph 39
so restrained. The Jerusalem Post and CNN Indonesia typically
send up to 50 alerts each day and some aggregator apps will send
and type of alerts will also be important. Moving away from using
push alerts as a blunt instrument and providing more personal
even more. choice and control could yet help publishers sustainably grow
engagement on their critical mobile platforms.
AVERAGE NUMBER OF PUSH ALERTS BY SELECTED
PUBLISHER

Weekly average Weekly average Weekly average

38.7 29.1 10.0
Pushes per day Pushes per day Pushes per day

Jerusalem Post, Israel NDTV, India New York Times, USA

Weekly average Weekly average Weekly average

8.3 3.4 1.9
Pushes per day Pushes per day Pushes per day

BBC News, UK The Times, UK Tagesschau (ARD), Germany

31
Author analysis based on a push alert tool developed by Matt Taylor (Financial Times) that tracks news alerts from over 100 news providers over the last two years.
https://project-push.tk.gg/
62 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

SECTION 3
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 63

SECTION 3

Analysis by Country and Market

In this section we publish a market-based view of the findings, which includes an overview of the most
important data points in terms of news.

These include an overview of consumption in each market, EUROPE AMERICAS

including details of the most popular news brands – traditional
3.01 United Kingdom 66 3.26 United States 118
and online. The pages also contain statistics about the different
sources of news over time, the role of different social networks, 3.02 Austria 68 3.27 Argentina 120
and levels of payment for online news. Information is drawn from 3.03 Belgium 70 3.28 Brazil 122
the 2025 Digital News Report survey using the methodology
3.04 Bulgaria 72 3.29 Canada 124
outlined on p. 6, with the exception of population data from the
United Nations,32 internet penetration data from the International 3.05 Croatia 74 3.30 Chile 126
Telecommunication Union (ITU),33 and press freedom scores from 3.06 Czech Republic 76 3.31 Colombia 128
Reporters Without Borders.34
3.07 Denmark 78 3.32 Mexico 130
Data from India, Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa are
3.08 Finland 80 3.33 Peru 132
representative of younger English-speakers rather than the
national population. The survey was fielded in English in these 3.09 France 82 ASIA-PACIFIC
markets (respondents had the option of selecting Hindi in India 3.10 Germany 84 3.34 Australia 136
and Swahili in Kenya, but the majority selected English), and
3.11 Greece 86 3.35 Hong Kong 138
restricted to ages 18 to 50 in Kenya and Nigeria. In markets where
internet penetration is lower, our data often represent younger 3.12 Hungary 88 3.36 India 140
and more affluent groups – even if they meet other nationally
3.13 Ireland 90 3.37 Indonesia 142
representative quotas. For all these reasons, one should be
cautious in comparing some data points across markets where 3.14 Italy 92 3.38 Japan 144
we know these limitations apply. In a few markets we do not 3.15 Netherlands 94 3.39 Malaysia 146
ask certain questions (such as on paying for news and podcasts)
3.16 Norway 96 3.40 Philippines 148
because sample differences could lead to misunderstandings or
misleading comparisons. We have also signalled important details 3.17 Poland 98 3.41 Singapore 150
about samples in a short note on the country page, where relevant. 3.18 Portugal 100 3.42 South Korea 152
We have ordered the countries and markets by geography
(Europe, Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Africa) and within each region 3.19 Romania 102 3.43 Taiwan 154
countries are then ordered alphabetically – with the exception of 3.20 Serbia 104 3.44 Thailand 156
UK at the start of the Europe section and the United States at the
3.21 Slovakia 106 AFRICA
start of the Americas.
3.22 Spain 108 3.45 Kenya 160
Finally, in 2023 we reformulated questions about the use of
3.23 Sweden 110 3.46 Morocco 162
different devices for any purpose and for news, asking about each
device separately to ensure greater accuracy of response. Data 3.24 Switzerland 112 3.47 Nigeria 164
will not be directly comparable to previous years and we have
3.25 Turkey 114 3.48 South Africa 166
indicated this change on the charts in question.

32
https://www.unfpa.org/data/world-population-dashboard. Taiwan data from government source.
33
https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/IT.NET.USER.ZS. Taiwan data from government source.
34
https://rsf.org/
64 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

SECTION 3
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 65

SECTION 3

Analysis by Country and Market

Europe
EUROPE
3.01 United Kingdom 66 3.14 Italy 92
3.02 Austria 68 3.15 Netherlands 94
3.03 Belgium 70 3.16 Norway 96
3.04 Bulgaria 72 3.17 Poland 98
3.05 Croatia 74 3.18 Portugal 100
3.06 Czech Republic 76 3.19 Romania 102
3.07 Denmark 78 3.20 Serbia 104
3.08 Finland 80 3.21 Slovakia 106
3.09 France 82 3.22 Spain 108
3.10 Germany 84 3.23 Sweden 110
3.11 Greece 86 3.24 Switzerland 112
3.12 Hungary 88 3.25 Turkey 114
3.13 Ireland 90
66 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

UNITED KINGDOM
The UK is characterised by well-established public service and
commercial news providers which have historically dominated both on
broadcast and in print and are also the biggest brands online. Digitally
native outlets are successful in some niches while the impact of online
creators or influencers is, so far, less marked than in other countries.
Population 68m
Internet penetration 96%

Fourteen years of Conservative-led Some of the most interesting new launch opinion site UnHerd and, as of September
government in the UK came to an end activity was in local news. Mill Media, a 2024, the weekly magazine the Spectator.
with the general election on 4 July 2024. digital-only local news provider which first The protracted sale of the Spectator’s
The Labour Party returned to power with launched in 2020, has now expanded to erstwhile stablemate, the Daily Telegraph,
a 174-seat majority. Implementation began six English and Scottish cities, including by temporary owners Redbird IMI, is
of the new Media Act and the much- London which lost its last remaining daily approaching a conclusion. Subject to
anticipated Online Safety Act (both passed print newspaper, the Evening Standard, in the necessary approvals, a consortium
before the election). The Online Safety September 2024. led by US-based RedBird Capital will
Act is designed to create a safer digital acquire the title from RedBird IMI.
environment by imposing a legal duty on Financial challenges continue at the BBC, RedBird IMI is 75% owned by Abu Dhabi’s
social media companies to protect users with another round of redundancies and International Media Investments, itself
from illegal content, hate speech, and closures at BBC News and more difficult backed by the deputy prime minister of the
misinformation. Concerns about online down-sizing at the BBC World Service, UAE. Plurality concerns about foreign state
misinformation dominated the UK news where the BBC’s leadership agrees with involvement in UK media ownership led
agenda in the summer of 2024 following the government about the importance Redbird IMI to sell.
the murder of three young girls at a of the World Service but not about using
summer holiday dance class in Southport the licence fee to fund it. In the latest The other major transaction in the print
on Merseyside. False rumours spread round of reductions, 130 jobs were cut and sector was the sale of Guardian Media
online that the assailant was a recently several programmes stopped. With a new Group’s venerable Sunday paper, the
arrived Muslim migrant fuelled rioting in Chairman, Samir Shah, appointed by the Observer, to Tortoise Media – the ‘slow
two dozen UK cities and led to more than outgoing Conservative government, the news’ start-up founded by James Harding,
1,250 arrests.35 Debate about the scope BBC is now preparing to make its case in ex-Times editor and former Director of BBC
and effectiveness of the Online Safety the Charter Review exercise planned to News. Terms of the deal involved the Scott
Act continues. start in the summer of 2025 with a public Trust (GMG’s ultimate owner) investing
consultation process. Various alternatives £5m into Tortoise Media for a shareholding
For news media providers, wrestling with to the licence fee are being mooted. that values the new Tortoise/Observer
the range of challenges presented by The current ten-year Charter runs until group at £55m.37
generative AI remained the main strategic December 2027.
priority. Newsrooms and product teams Jim Egan
experimented with greater intent and One of the UK’s major news broadcasters, Senior Research Associate,
more external-facing innovations were Sky News, announced a strategic review Reuters Institute
launched by several news outlets including in January 2025 which seeks to add some
the BBC, Reuters, the Guardian, and the direct audience revenues to their existing
Financial Times. business. It remains to be seen whether a
legacy broadcaster can attract substantial
Commercially, growing subscription and revenue from premium content.
membership revenues remained a big
part of the strategic agenda for most Although TV and radio news audience
news publishers (DMGT reported more figures continue to fall for the main
than 250,000 for its Mail+ partial paywall providers, GB News – a relatively new
launched in January 202436) but with entrant – has seen its position grow both
willingness to pay relatively low in the UK few for its broadcast and online output in our
are relying exclusively or even predominantly weekly usage rankings (up from eighth to
on reader revenue and are instead pursuing fourth in the TV, radio, and print ranking).
a balanced mix of advertising, subscriptions, GB News is co-owned by Sir Paul Marshall
and other revenue sources. who also owns the conservative news and

35
https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/policing-response-to-the-2024-summer-riots/
36
https://pressgazette.co.uk/news/mail-crosses-250000-digital-subscribers-and-appoints-first-global-womens-editor/
37
https://pressgazette.co.uk/publishers/nationals/tortoise-observer-deal-signed-and-lucy-rock-named-print-editor/
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital News
Axis Line Report
on both 2025 | United Kingdom
layers: 67
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYK TV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE BBC News (TV and radio) 47 BBC News online 41
ITV News 22 Guardian online 15
TOP BRANDS
Sky News (24-hour news) 15 Sky News online 11
% Weekly usage
GB News (24-hour news) 9 MailOnline 11
Weekly use Channel 4 News (C4 News) 8 Regional or local newspaper online 7
TV, radio & print Commercial radio news 8 Telegraph online 6
3 days per week or more Daily Mail/Mail on Sunday 8 GB News online 6
TV, radio & print
Guardian/Observer 5 Sun online 5
Weekly use
Sun/Sun on Sunday 5 MSN News 5
online brands
Regional or local newspaper 5 ITV News online 4
3 days per week or more
online brands The Times/Sunday Times 4 The Times online 4
Metro (free paper) 4 Mirror online 4

10%
Al Jazeera 4 Yahoo! News 4
CNN 4 Metro online 3
pay for Daily Telegraph/Sunday Telegraph 3 BBC TV News: 41% Al Jazeera online 3
ONLINE NEWS Channel 5 News (C5 News) 3 BBC Radio News: 15% CNN online 3

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

Tisa Sans Pro Medium
CHANGING MEDIA Tisa Sans Pro Medium
Tisa Sans Pro Light Tisa Sans Pro Light
6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking
90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White
News audiences for TV (down from 79% to 48%) and print (from 59% to 12%) have fallen substantially over the past 12 years, resulting in an
online-led, mobile-first UK news landscape.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2013–25 Social media
News podcasts 7% 2013–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 3%
100% 100%

79%
74% 73%
67% 67%
59%
50% 48% 50% 45%
39%
29% 26%
20% 16%
12%
0% 0%
2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Overall trust in news is stable this year, but remains more than 15pp lower than
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
before the Brexit referendum (2016). Public broadcasters such as the BBC, Channel trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
4, and ITV remain the most trusted news brands along with the Financial Times. Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
More opinionated news brands tend to have lower trust levels in our survey, along BBC News 60% 16% 24%
with tabloid newspapers. Channel 4 56% 26% 18%
Daily Mail 24% 27% 49%
Daily Mirror 22% 28% 50%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 Daily Telegraph 42% 32% 25%
100% Financial Times 57% 30% 14%
GB News 29% 27% 44%
Guardian 51% 28% 21%

35%
Independent 46% 36% 18%
50% 51%
ITV News 56% 25% 19%
35%
MSN News 24% 43% 32%
OVERALL TRUST Regional or local newspaper 51% 32% 17%
0%
32/48 markets Sky News 51% 27% 22%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Sun 17% 21% 62%
The Times 47% 30% 23%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
20
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 78.89 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

17%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 17% (-) 63% 4 WhatsApp 10% (-) 70%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 13% (-) 54% 5 Instagram 9% (+1) 42%
via social, messaging,
3 X 12% (-2) 24% 6 TikTok 6% (+2) 18%
or email
68 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

AUSTRIA
Austria has been in a state of political turmoil since the far-right,
and Russia-friendly, Freedom Party (FPÖ) came out on top in the
September 2024 elections, narrowly beating the conservative
People’s Party (ÖVP). It took more than five months for the ÖVP to
put together a workable coalition that excluded the far right,
but throughout this process press freedom and the relationship Population 9m
between politicians and the news media have been in the spotlight. Internet penetration 95%

Throughout the year, tensions grew better coverage. In February 2024 the plummeting to just 15%, a 20-year low,
between the right-wing Freedom Party Austrian Court of Audit’s report produced with 85% of journalists experiencing
(FPÖ) and the public service broadcaster firm data and criticized the media worsening working conditions. Following
ORF. In February 2025, ORF’s editorial spending of the ÖVP-led, Kurz government the previous year’s cuts at Der Standard
leadership publicly rejected accusations (2019–21), citing excessive costs, lack of and Wiener Zeitung, Mediaprint’s Kurier and
from FPÖ politician Peter Westenthaler, transparency, and preferential treatment Kronen Zeitung each announced job cuts of
a member of the ORF’s governing board, for party-affiliated outlets. The report 40 staff members in 2024.
who claimed that ORF journalists were highlighted the absence of strategic
acting as political propagandists. guidelines, undocumented budget Despite the challenges, the Austrian media
increases, and advertising campaigns industry received some new financial
Political divisions deepened when a favouring certain newspapers. However, support. Around €20m were distributed
leaked draft of the FPÖ-ÖVP coalition new rules to avoid more political scandals with the enactment of the previous
agreement revealed concrete moves to such as this one, involving greater government’s 2023 Federal Act on the
enact the FPÖ’s long-standing ambitions transparency around state advertising, Promotion of High-Quality Journalism in
to abolish the household-based ORF have yet to be implemented. Print and Online Media (QJF-G) for the
fee by the end of 2026 and replace it first time, signalling an effort to bolster
with direct state budget funding. Critics The year 2024 was a super-election journalistic standards amid economic
condemned these measures as an attempt one, with European elections in June, uncertainties.
to ‘Orbanize’ Austria’s media landscape, parliamentary elections in September,
warning that they could undermine press and a variety of municipal and regional Beyond newsroom struggles, big tech’s
independence, suppress critical journalism, elections taking place in the spring and dominance in Austria’s advertising market
and increase government control over autumn. These, together with other faced increased scrutiny. The digital tax,
public broadcasting. However, with the major events such as the wars in Gaza and introduced in 2020 to cover internet
collapse of FPÖ-ÖVP coalition talks, a Ukraine, and major sporting events like the advertising not included in the normal
new government emerged, led by the UEFA European Football Championship advertising levy, raised around €124m.
ÖVP, the Social Democrats (SPÖ), and the and the Paris Olympics, led to a surge It revealed that global platforms like
Liberals (NEOS). Their media policy agenda in interest in news according to our Google and Meta earned €2.6bn in ad
includes freezing the ORF contribution fee data. Those that said they were very or revenue from Austria, greater than the
until 2029, reducing political appointees extremely interested went up 4pp to 52%, slightly over €2bn earned by local media.
in ORF’s governing body, and enhancing with interest in politics up 7pp to 44%. Mediaprint also launched Werbepilot, a
citizen participation. And this high interest was not limited to new programmatic advertising platform,
the national level. designed to reclaim lost ground in the
While the level of the ORF’s funding is digital ad market.
contentious, there is also debate over Despite continued strong interest in news,
subsidies for privately owned media. financial challenges continue to dominate Sergio Sparviero and Josef Trappel, with
During coalition negotiations between the Austria’s media landscape. The reach of additional research by Stefan Gadringer
FPÖ and the People’s Party (ÖVP), FPÖ traditional news brands remained stable, University of Salzburg
politicians fuelled controversy by calling apart from Kronen Zeitung, which saw a 2pp
for the elimination of press subsidies, decline online but remained the most-read
accusing Der Standard newspaper of using newspaper and the second most-accessed
secretly filmed video material to attempt offline news source, following Zeit im Bild
to embarrass the party. (ZIB), ORF’s flagship newscast. Meanwhile,
newsroom layoffs persisted. Unsurprisingly
There have long been accusations that the Journalist Barometer survey of media
some politicians have used subsidies professionals across Austria, Germany,
and government advertising to secure and Switzerland reported job satisfaction
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis LineDigital
on bothNews
layers:Report 2025 | Austria 69
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYK TV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE ORF News (public broadcaster) 63
13 ORF News online 29
7
Kronen Zeitung 10
25 Kronen Zeitung online 5
18
TOP BRANDS
ServusTV News 9
20 Der Standard online 6
16
% Weekly usage
ZDF News (Germany) 6
14 Heute online 5
12
Weekly use Bezirksblätter 10
13 oe24.at (österreich.at, sport.oe24.at, buzz.oe24.at) 4
11
TV, radio & print Puls 4 News 137 meinbezirk.at/woche.at/bezirksrundschau.at 6
11
3 days per week or more oe24 TV 125 Puls 24 online 6
10
TV, radio & print
Kleine Zeitung 5
12 Kleine Zeitung online 3
9
Weekly use
Puls 24 6
12 GMX 4
9
online brands
ARD News (Germany) 6
11 Kurier online 4
9
3 days per week or more
online brands Heute 6
11 Die Presse online 4
8
RTL News 5
11 KroneHit online 5
8

22%
Der Standard 10
5 CNN.com 2
7
Österreich 5
10 Tagesschau (ARD News online) 3
7
pay for KroneHit 4
10 ORF TV News: 45% BBC News online 3
7
ONLINE NEWS ATV 6
10 ORF Radio News: 41% 3
heute.de (ZDF Deutschland) 6

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

Tisa Sans Pro Medium
CHANGING MEDIA Tisa Sans Pro Medium
Tisa Sans Pro Light Tisa Sans Pro Light
6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking
90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White
Weekly reach of printed newspapers has halved since 2025 but remains high by international standards. Podcasts have become an
important complementary source of news for many Austrians.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2015–25 Social media
News podcasts 11% 2015–25* 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 5%
100% 100%

78%
71% 68% 67% 71%
70%
57% 59%
50% 50%
38% 35% 41%
36%
35%
18%

0% 0%
2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots * 2018 figures for computer use were likely overstated due to an error in polling

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust in news media has increased to 41%, the same level recorded in 2022 in the
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
post-COVID period. The public broadcaster ORF retains the highest level of trust at trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
63%, closely followed by upmarket newspapers such as Der Standard and Die Presse. Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
Tabloid news brands tend to be trusted less by audiences. ATV 45% 26% 29%
Der Standard 60% 17% 23%
Die Presse 59% 24% 22%
Heute 39% 21% 40%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 Kleine Zeitung 52% 24% 24%
100% Kronen Zeitung 34% 19% 47%
Kurier 54% 21% 25%
NEWS 46% 26% 28%

41%
oe24 43% 21% 36%
50% 48%
41% OÖ Nachrichten 52% 26% 22%
ORF News 63% 14% 23%
OVERALL TRUST Puls 4 News 51% 23% 26%
0%
21/48 markets Regional or local newspaper 58% 25% 18%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Salzburger Nachrichten 54% 24% 22%
Servus TV News 57% 20% 23%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
22
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 78.12 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

20%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 22% (+2) 48% 4 Instagram 16% (+5) 39%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 20% (-) 51% 5 TikTok 8% (+4) 18%
via social, messaging,
3 WhatsApp 19% (+1) 71% 6 X 7% (+3) 12%
or email
70 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

BELGIUM
Belgium’s media landscape is characterised by its division between
the Dutch-speaking Flemish region and the French-speaking Wallonia.
While digital consumption continues to rise, key industry players
are adapting through strategic partnerships and new offerings.
Meanwhile, policy changes, such as the reduction of newspaper
distribution subsidies, are reshaping the news media market. Population 11.7m
Internet penetration 95%

In Belgium, readership trends remain industry. Amid financial uncertainty, sector compared to the Netherlands,
stable, as the growing number of digital Belgian publishers are finding new allocating just €510,000 annually versus
news users makes up for faltering print revenue streams. Catching up with the Netherlands’ €7m. The Flemish
audiences. According to data from the their Walloon counterparts, DPG Media, Minister of Media highlights broader
Centre for Information on the Media (CIM) HLN’s parent company, Mediahuis, support for media initiatives, but critics
from November 2024, Flemish daily and Roularta have together secured contend that funding is disproportionately
newspapers collectively reach 3.5 million agreements with Google News Showcase, channelled towards media industry
readers, maintaining a relative reach of ensuring compensation for their content. projects rather than direct support for
37%. The total audience across all The deal is framed as a way to expand journalism. With €486,000 yearly, the
platforms continues to grow modestly – reach and engage new audiences. When it situation is similar in Wallonia, where 75%
largely because of population growth. comes to actively negotiating with AI of the beneficiaries in 2024 were
Among quality newspapers, De Standaard firms, however, Belgian publishers lack a freelancers.
remains the largest, with a total daily unified front, raising concerns that larger
reach of 624,000 readers, up 4% from the entities may secure beneficial deals while The stabilisation of print readership in
previous year. Meanwhile, Het Laatste smaller outlets struggle. Wallonia and the resilience of Flemish
Nieuws (2,145,400) and Het Nieuwsblad newspapers indicate continued relevance
(1,520,890) continue to dominate overall The audio-visual sector is also facing for traditional media, but economic
readership figures.38 structural challenges. Broadcasters VTM sustainability will depend on strategic
(DPGMedia) and Play Media (Telenet) adaptation. One example is that AI is
In Wallonia, CIM figures confirm the warn of potential financial losses by 2026 increasingly integrated into journalistic
continued digitalisation of the media unless fiscal and advertising policies are workflows, mainly for tasks such as
landscape with the online audience of reformed. They are lobbying for stricter transcription and editing, but its use for
francophone newspapers increasing by regulations on tech giants’ advertising content creation is limited, with only 14%
55.6% since 2017. Le Soir strengthens its operations and advocating for a tax break of Flemish journalists utilising generative
position as the leading quality newspaper, (lower VAT) for advertising in regional AI daily. 40 Meanwhile, ethical concerns are
reaching 797,610 daily readers – a 7.7% media. The sector’s struggles are driven growing. De Morgen and De Standaard
increase from the previous year. Its owner, by the rise of international streaming have strategically decided to leave the
Rossel, gradually rolled out a new format platforms and an annual income decline social media platform X due to concerns
across its titles called Verified Vertical of 2.2% due to people abandoning linear about Elon Musk’s values being at
Videos in an attempt to cater to younger, TV in favour of streaming services. variance with their own and those of a
digital audiences. Beyond the quality The companies argue that, without some democratic society.
press, local news publisher Sudinfo policy change, this could lead to job losses
continues to attract the largest audience, Ike Picone
and reduced production investment,
with nearly one million daily readers Associate Professor of Journalism and Media
particularly in their news operations.
across its various titles including La Meuse Studies, Vrije Universiteit Brussel
In Wallonia, 24-hour news channel LN24
and La Capitale.39 is also looking for new investment – for
which it surprisingly started talks with
Despite these audience trends, economic
public broadcaster RTBF, something the
pressures are evident. In February,
Walloon Minister of Media, Jacqueline
Het Laatste Nieuws (HLN) laid off eight
Galant, was quick to block.
journalists, a direct result of declining
digital revenues and the end of In this challenging context, funding for
government subsidies for newspaper investigative journalism remains a
distribution announced last year, the contentious issue. The Association of
latter being a major policy shift that is still Investigative Journalists (VVOJ) argues
reverberating across the newspaper that Flanders significantly underfunds the

38
https://www.standaard.be/cnt/dmf20241112_94379703
39
https://www.lesoir.be/635414/article/2024-11-12/le-soir-se-renforce-comme-premier-quotidien-de-reference
40
https://www.mediapuntvlaanderen.be/updates-analyse/media-dossier-generatieve-ai-in-journalistiek
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both layers:Report 2025 | Belgium 71
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT (FRENCH SPEAKING)
90% CMYK ONLINE
Black (FRENCH SPEAKING)
AND ONLINE La Une (RTBF) 40
12 RTL Info 31
RTL News 36
12 Le Soir online 25
TOP BRANDS TF1 News (incl. TF1, LCI, TMC) 21
10 RTBF News online 24
% Weekly usage Vivacité (RTBF) 18
7 7sur7 15
Le Soir 15
8 DH Les Sports+ online 12
Weekly use Bel-RTL 14
6 L'Avenir online 12
TV, radio & print 13
Regional or local newspaper 9 La Libre online 10
3 days per week or more Radio Contact 13
5 Regional or local news online 9
TV, radio & print France Télévisions (France 2, France 3) 12
5 9
MSN News
Weekly use La Première 11
5 L’Echo online 7
online brands Tipik (RTBF) 11
7 Yahoo! News 6
RTBF (public broadcaster)
3 days per week or more Classic 21 10 4 total offline reach: 59% LN24 6
online brands Axis Line on both layers: Axis Line on both layers:
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT (FLEMISH SPEAKING)
90% CMYKONLINE
Black (FLEMISH SPEAKING)
VTM 34
11 Het Laatste Nieuws online 44

Text: VRT 1 32
9 Numbers: VRT
Text:NWS online 35 Numbers:
TisaHet
Sans Pro Light
Laatste Nieuws 23
9 Tisa Sans Pro Medium Het Nieuwsblad
Tisa Sans Pro Light
(nieuwsblad.be) 20 Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking
90% CMYK Black Qmusic 18
6 White 90% CMYKNWS online
Black 8 White
Radio 2 (VRT) 16
5 Gazet van Antwerpen online 8
VRT Canvas 15
8 Het Belang van Limburg onine 7
Het Nieuwsblad 12
5 De Standaard online 7

16% Radio 1 (VRT)

MNM (VRT)
12
4
11
5
De Morgen online 6
De Tijd online 6
pay for ONLINE NEWS Joe 10
3 BBC News online 4
Studio Brussel (VRT) 10
4 VRT (public broadcaster) Bruzz.be 3
French 14% | Flemish 17% 7
Nostalgie 3 total offline reach: 59% CNN.com 3

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2016–25 Social media
News podcasts 5% 2016–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots
Text: 5% Numbers: Text: Numbers:
100% Tisa Sans Pro Light 100%
Tisa Sans Pro Medium Tisa Sans Pro Light Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking
82% 90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White
75% 75% 73%
70%
60%
50% 46% 50% 50%
45% 39%
37%
24%
18% 20%

0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2016–25 PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

100% Only the brands listed were included in the survey. It should not be treated as a list of
the most or least trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
All Flemish French
FRENCH FLEMISH
59% Brand Trust Neither Don’t Brand Trust Neither Don’t
50% 51% 51% Trust Trust
43%
39% 7sur7 43% 37% 21% De Morgen 68% 22% 9%
35%
Bel-RTL 55% 29% 16% De Standaard 72% 20% 8%
43% France 2 56% 31% 13% De Tijd 72% 20% 8%
OVERALL TRUST L’Echo 52% 37% 11% Gazet van Antwerpen 63% 25% 11%
0% =17/48 markets
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 La Dernière Heure 47% 35% 18% Het Belang van Limburg 63% 26% 10%
La Libre 54% 33% 13% Het Laatste Nieuws 67% 19% 14%
Flemish-speaking Flanders (51%) and French-speaking
Wallonia (35%) continue to feature a significant trust gap. La Première 58% 31% 12% Het Nieuwsblad 70% 20% 10%
In both markets, the respective public broadcasters VRT and L'Avenir 49% 36% 15% Joe 63% 25% 11%
RTBF remain the most trusted news sources, even though some Le Soir 63% 26% 11% NWS (@nwsnwsnws) 66% 23% 11%
commercial organisations feature similarly high scores.
Radio Contact 48% 35% 16% Qmusic 66% 23% 11%
Regional or local newspaper 54% 33% 12% Radio 1 75% 18% 7%
TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS RTBF News 67% 21% 11% Radio 2 75% 17% 8%
RTL Info 60% 24% 17% Regional or local newspaper 67% 23% 10%
Rank Brand For News For All TF1 55% 27% 18% VRT Nieuws 79% 13% 8%
Vivacité 57% 31% 13% VTM Nieuws 76% 15% 10%
1 Facebook 31% (-1) 67%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following brands is? Please use the scale below,
where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
2 YouTube 14% (-2) 49% ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand were excluded. Whether respondents
consider a brand trustworthy is their subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.
3 Instagram 14% (-) 41%

4 WhatsApp 11% (-3) 60% WORLD PRESS FREEDOM

INDEX SCORE 2025
Score:
80.12 18 / 180
5 Facebook Messenger 8% (-4) 43%
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org
72 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

BULGARIA
The Bulgarian media environment struggles with systemic issues of
political interference, limited pluralism, and low levels of public trust.
The country continues to be rocked by severe political turbulence,
culminating in two snap parliamentary elections in 2024 and the
return to power of the GERB, the centre-right party of former
‘strongman’ Prime Minister Boyko Borisov. Population 6.6m
Internet penetration 80%

Bulgaria has held seven elections in four Journalists in Bulgaria continue to work Younger audiences increasingly get
years, contributing to widespread voter in a challenging environment, facing high news from TikTok, allowing parties like
apathy, disillusionment, and election levels of stress, burnout, political pressure, Velichie to campaign exclusively on the
fatigue. The 2024 elections were marred and physical attacks in their reporting platform, reaching large audiences in
by record low turnout and allegations of of elections. In March 2025, a UK-based Bulgaria and abroad. Instrumental in
vote-buying and corruption. The pro- Bulgarian spy ring was found guilty of the election success of far-right parties
Russian far-right party Velichie (Greatness) spying for Russia. The trio, with alleged are popular ‘influencer’ social media
disputed the October election results links to the ‘highest echelons of power’ personalities and vloggers, with their own
after it failed to enter Parliament, short in Bulgaria, placed the award-winning YouTube or Patreon channels promoting
of 30 votes. Following a protracted case, investigative journalist Christo Grozev from anti-establishment, nationalist, or pro-
the Bulgarian Constitutional Court found Bellingcat under intense surveillance, with Russian viewpoints. Notable examples
numerous election irregularities and discussions among the ring to kidnap and are the former athlete Kiril Kirilov, and
declared the results for 16 parliamentary kill the journalist. Martin Karbowski, with 233,000 YouTube
seats illegal. Velichie entered Parliament subscribers, who positions his channel
after a recount, becoming the second far- In a landmark decision for the Bulgarian as a source for discussions and questions
right party alongside Vazrazhdane (Revival) media environment, in June 2024 the absent from traditional television. Other
in a divided National Assembly. European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) content creators with radical views such
issued a unanimous judgment in the long- as Stanislav Tsanov have spread their own
On 1 January 2025, Bulgaria became a running case of the Bulgarian reporter anti-establishment perspectives, whether
full member of the border-free Schengen Rosen Bosev (Bosev v. Bulgaria) who about the pandemic or the war in Ukraine,
zone, marking a significant milestone for appealed his 2017 conviction of defamation and they present increasingly strong
the country, which has been working on of a senior government official. The Court competition to traditional media outlets in
fulfilling the Schengen area membership held that there had been a violation of influencing public discourse.
criteria since 2011. However, the timing the journalist’s right to a fair trial and a
of Bulgaria’s joining the eurozone is a violation of the right to the freedom of Nationalist influencers aside, independent
divisive issue among citizens and the expression.41 The case is significant in journalists are also successfully building
fragile ruling coalition. To show their the context of increased use of Strategic large digital audiences for their content
disapproval, activists from the pro-Russian Lawsuits Against Public Participation and commentary. Journalists like Lyubomir
ultra-nationalist party Vazrazhdane turned (SLAPPs) by public officials to silence Zhechev, who has won awards for his rule-
to violent protests, briefly occupying the critical journalism. of-law videos, and investigative reporters
Bulgarian National Bank’s building and Mirolyuba Benatova and Genka Shikerova,
vandalising the office of the European Nova TV, owned by Nova Broadcasting creators of the Dneven Red (Daily Order)
Commission in the capital, Sofia. Group, and BTV news, owned by BTV podcast, provide popular alternative
group, are leading news sources on TV and viewpoints on current events.
The frequent changes in governments online. With a 92% market share, both
have delayed important reforms and media groups dominate the relatively Lada T. Price
directives necessary for the gradual small advertising landscape, attracting the University of Sheffield, UK
implementation of the European Media majority of advertising revenue.42 24 Chasa
Freedom Act, which came into force is still the leading print news source but
in May 2024. The Act aims to address overall, the press experienced a significant
several enduring issues that plague the fall of 10% in advertising revenues.43 While
Bulgarian media landscape, such as lack few people pay for news, Dnevnik.bg and
of transparency of media ownership, state Capital (Economedia AD) are among the
interference in the public service media, few quality news outlets combining digital
and control over media regulators. subscriptions with advertising income.

41
https://www.echr.coe.int/w/judgment-concerning-bulgaria-2
42
http://mediaconnection.bg/report/view/105
43
https://www.baca.bg/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/2024_Media-Market.pdf
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Bulgaria
layers: 73
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYK TV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE 60
10 Nova TV News online 39
11
NovaTV News
BTV News 11
54 BTV News online 8
38
TOP BRANDS
BNT (Bulgarian National Television) 12
35 ABV News online 10
29
% Weekly usage
Nova News 10
26 novini.bg 14
28
Weekly use 24 Chasa 14
21 24 Chasa online 14
24
TV, radio & print BNT News online 7
22
BNR (Bulgarian National Radio) 5
13
3 days per week or more Petel.bg 10
19
Regional or local newspaper 10
13
TV, radio & print
Bulgaria ON AIR 6
12 dir.bg 8
16
Weekly use
Telegraf 8
12 Blitz.bg 8
14
online brands
Trud 6
9 Dnevnik online 7
12
3 days per week or more
online brands Darik Radio 4
9 Regional or local newspaper online 10
12

Euronews Bulgaria 3
7 BNR News online 3
10

9%
3
TV 7/8 6 Trud online 7
10

Capital 4
6 Darik 4
9
pay for Other news media from outside Bulgaria 5 Flagman.bg 4
9
ONLINE NEWS CNN 4 Capital online 5
8

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

METHODOLOGY NOTE Tisa Sans Pro Light
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Light
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking
90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White
We introduced education quotas in 2023 to make data more representative of national populations. Part of the declines in reach in the
source chart between 2022 and 2023 will be because there are more people with lower levels of education in our sample, who typically
have lower interest in news.
SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2018–25 Social media
News podcasts 15% 2018–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 5%
100% 100%
88%
84% 81%
74% 78%
72%
60% 67% 63%
57%
50% 50%

23% 21% 24%

10%
0% 0%
2019 2021 2023 2025 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
The highly volatile political environment probably contributes to the continuing
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
declining trust in news and the fact that Bulgaria has the highest level of news trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
avoidance (63%) in our survey. PSB’s Bulgarian National Television and Bulgarian Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
National Radio remain the most trusted brands, followed by the two leading private 24 Chasa 44% 30% 26%
TV channels Nova TV News and BTV News. ABV News 37% 37% 26%
Bivol 40% 31% 29%
BTV News 52% 22% 26%

OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2018–25 Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) 57% 24% 19%

100% Bulgarian National Television (BNT) 59% 22% 19%

Capital 42% 32% 26%
Darik 51% 30% 19%

26%
Dir 37% 35% 27%
50% Dnevnik 39% 35% 26%
38%
Euronews Bulgaria 49% 31% 20%
26%
OVERALL TRUST Nova TV News 55% 22% 22%
=44/48 markets Novini 45% 32% 22%
0%
2018 2025
Regional or local newspaper 43% 35% 23%
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’
Trud 41% 32% 27%

Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
70
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 60.78 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

23%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 57% (+1) 78% 4 Viber 14% (-1) 62%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 30% (-2) 64% 5 Facebook Messenger 11% (-3) 49%
via social, messaging,
3 TikTok 15% (+3) 34% 6 Instagram 9% (-2) 35%
or email
74 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

CROATIA
Croatia’s small media market showed some growth in 2024, with
increasing awareness of the need for digital transition. The structure
of the news industry remains largely unchanged with offline use
dominated by two foreign-owned TV news channels (Nova and RTL)
together with the public broadcaster (HRT). Restructuring of the
public service broadcaster and ensuring its continued relevance are Population 4m
among the main concerns of the sector. Internet penetration 83%

While the Croatian commercial media Croatian audiences remain reluctant to or state advertising, where public
market is small, advertising revenues, pay for online news. The proportion taking accountability continues to be lacking.
which are the main source of funding, out a subscription, donation, or
have been growing. Industry estimates 44 membership at 6%, is one of the lowest The Croatian Journalists Association
suggest TV, radio, print, and outdoor figures in our survey. reported 752 active lawsuits against
advertising rose by 5% in 2024 to €217m journalists in 2024, down from 945 in
(but with a 5% fall in print advertising), The situation of the public broadcaster the previous year, but still a high number.
while the online advertising market HRT has deteriorated in the past two One independent study45 found that of
accounted for €133m, after projected years. Although it has the security of 1,333 lawsuits against journalists in the
growth of 13% in 2024. independent financing through a period from 2016 to 2023, 41% had at
compulsory licence fee of around €10.40 least one characteristic of a SLAPP suit.
The major commercial TV companies, a month, since this has been static for the The study also found that cases took an
which have been foreign-owned for over past 15 years, it had to be bailed out by average of four years, and most judgments
two decades, still dominate as sources of government top-up payments two years in found in favour of the journalists.
information, but Nova TV’s (United Group) a row. HRT’s director general Robert Šveb
15-year broadcasting licence is up for Zrinjka Peruško
has engaged a firm of consultants to
renewal in 2025. Both RTL TV and Nova Centre for Media and Communication
advise on restructuring the company and
TV were fined in 2023 by the Council for Research, University of Zagreb
investing more in digital production and
Electronic Media for failing to deliver distribution. Mr Šveb’s changes have been
the required 2.5% investment into criticised by some for allegedly focusing
programmes from Croatian independent on attracting audiences rather than the
producers and were expected to make up public service remit, and the outsourcing
for it in 2024. of technical and production tasks. The
restructuring plans include a 30%
The United Group operates the cable
reduction in HRT’s staff over a three-year
news channel N1 and the top-ranked
period. Our data show that HRT is still one
free-to-air station, Nova TV, but financial
of the top sources of news, used by almost
problems led it to implement cuts at N1 in
half (45%) the adult population weekly, a
2024. Meanwhile Czech-based Central
similar number to the two commercial TV
European Media Enterprises (CME) has
stations. Meanwhile, HRT’s online
owned RTL TV since 2022. Austrian and
performance at 22% weekly reach has
German companies are prominent in the
grown by 5pp in the last year but remains
print market. The tabloid 24sata, owned
much less than for broadcast.
by the Austria Styria group, is the best-
selling newspaper and attracts large Although the local media scene sports a
numbers online, while the domestically large number of different radio and
owned Hanza media is the market leader television stations as well as digital-born
in print media overall. The government media, some areas remain poorly covered
has agreed on the need to start and could be described as news deserts,
subsidising print distribution, since one according to recent research (Vozab and
of the largest print distribution companies Čuvalo 2024). In addition, local media are
closed in 2024, placing access to printed in a constant funding bind, as very small
newspapers and magazines in jeopardy, local markets cannot generate sufficient
especially in rural areas. advertising revenue to support them, which
breeds dependence on the local politicians

44
https://hura.hr/istrazivanja/medijska-potrosnja-u-hr/ and for digital, https://iab-croatia.com/istrazivanje-iab-a-croatia-hrvatsko-trziste-online-oglasavanja-stabilno-raste-u-
2023-godini-zabiljezeno-je-povecanje-za-21/
45
https://tripalo.hr/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SLAPP_Report_final_eng-3.pdf
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis LineDigital
on bothNews
layers:Report 2025 | Croatia 75
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE NovaTV News 47
13 Index.hr 49
17
RTL News 15
46 24sata online 16
43
TOP BRANDS
HTV & HR News (public broadcaster) 12
45 Dnevnik online 17
34
% Weekly usage
24sata 13
27 Jutarnji online 13
31
Weekly use Jutarnji list 10
17 Net.hr 12
24
TV, radio & print Otvoreni radio 7
16 Vecernji online 11
24
3 days per week or more Local radio news 6
15 Tportal.hr 12
22
TV, radio & print
Vecernji list 7
13 HRT News online (incl. HRTi) (public broadcaster) 14
22
Weekly use
Narodni radio 5
11 Dnevno.hr 11
19
online brands
N1 3
9 Local radio news online 11
17
3 days per week or more
online brands Regional or local newspaper 7
9 Telegram.hr 7
15
Slobodna Dalmacija 5
9 RTL News online 11
15

6%
Local television news 5
8 Slobodna Dalmacija online 5
13
Antena radio 4
7 Direktno.hr 7
11
pay for Al Jazeera 2 5 Express.24sata.hr 5
7
ONLINE NEWS Novi list 3 5 N1 online 4
7

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The downward trend in use of news is seen in all media except television, signifying perhaps greater audience disengagement between
election cycles. Very few people pay for online news.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2017–25 Social media
News podcasts 6% 2017–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 3%
100% 100%
91%
85%
79% 77% 72%
64% 66% 62%
56%
50% 46% 50%
43%

21% 23%
17%

0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Overall trust in the news is up but still 9pp lower than during the height of the
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
Coronavirus pandemic. The most-used commercial channels, Nova TV and RTL, trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
are amongst the most trusted. By contrast the trust score of cable news channel N1 Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
fell slightly this year after a significant reduction in programming. 24 sata 45% 30% 25%
Dnevno.hr 43% 33% 24%
HTV News (public television) 52% 24% 24%
index.hr 46% 27% 27%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2017–25 Jutarnji list 50% 28% 21%
100% N1 46% 32% 22%
Net.hr 42% 35% 23%
NovaTV 64% 22% 14%

36%
Otvoreni radio 51% 33% 15%
50%
39% 36% Regional or local newspaper 51% 32% 17%
RTL News 62% 23% 15%
OVERALL TRUST Slobodna Dalmacija 42% 35% 23%
0%
=27/48 markets
Telegram.hr 44% 33% 24%
2017 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Tportal.hr 44% 35% 21%
Vecernji 50% 29% 21%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
60
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 64.2 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

25%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 48% (-1) 69% 4 WhatsApp 14% (-4) 65%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 24% (-) 66% 5 TikTok 12% (+4) 29%
via social, messaging,
3 Instagram 14% (-) 45% 6 Viber 8% (-3) 42%
or email
76 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

CZECH REPUBLIC
The Czech media landscape benefited from relative wider economic
stability in 2024, yet financial struggles persisted, especially for print.
Publishers pushed digital monetisation, triggering regulatory scrutiny
over ‘consent or pay’ models towards acceptance of tracking cookies.
Meanwhile, a long-debated public licence fee increase came closer,
though opposition plans threaten its future. Population 10.5m
Internet penetration 86%

2024 saw a restoration of better Protection Board, which has called upon May 2025, the new law raises the monthly
macroeconomic conditions for Czech the platforms to ensure that users’ right to fees, currently at €5.40 for TV and €1.80
media markets, as the economy returned decline the consent to personal data for Radio by €0.60 and €0.40, respectively.
to growth (+1.0% GDP) and inflation was collection is not effectively penalised by The law will also link future increase to the
brought back under control (2.4%). having to pay for access as the only inflation rate, a mechanism that has been
Nevertheless, despite an overall 8% alternative. 47 As of 2025, the investigation long demanded by public service media
increase in advertising expenditure, is still ongoing. advocates to improve the political
many media houses and publishers have independence of their funding.
continued to face financial difficulties. In another action by regulators, the Office
The newspaper sector has seen another for Protection of Competition (i.e. the Nevertheless, the main opposition party
11% decline in circulation, and the closure competition authority) has been ANO has already announced its plans to
of several print editions, including Lidové investigating Seznam for a suspected abolish the licence fee after the upcoming
noviny, the oldest Czech newspaper, abuse of its dominant position on the Parliamentary elections (scheduled for
founded in 1893. A business daily, E15, market. According to sources quoted by autumn 2025) and replace it with direct
followed suit in December, although it the weekly Reflex, the Office was state funding, alongside plans to merge
continues in a digital format, and the free examining allegations of discriminatory Czech Television and Czech Radio into a
regional weekly 5plus2 folded, citing rising practices against smaller publishers single institution. Similar changes were
production costs. 46 regarding the sharing of advertising made to public service broadcasters in
revenues from Seznam’s Newsfeed Hungary and Slovakia, and brought
Facing the gradual demise of print titles, service. However, the timing of the raid increased government control, so these
Czech publishers are being forced to on Seznam’s headquarters, coming proposals have caused concerns for the
accelerate the process of digital shortly after Seznam Zpravy published future of independent public service
transition, and to develop new, innovative an investigation linking the Chairman media in the Czech Republic.
ways of monetising online content. Some of the Office with a businessman charged
brands have reported increases in their with corruption, sparked accusations of Václav Štětka
digital subscribers, including the daily retaliation by the Office and an attempt Loughborough University, UK
Denik N, which passed the 26,000 mark in to put pressure on Seznam’s journalists. 48
2024, or the political weekly Respekt.
Several major media houses – including In the area of media legislation, last year
the Czech News Centre, Mafra, Economia, brought further developments in the
and Seznam – introduced so-called ongoing and tumultuous struggle to
consent wall banners, which prompt users increase the licence fees for public service
to either explicitly consent to data media, which have been frozen since 2008
collection about their online behaviour (for Czech Television) and 2005 (for Czech
(as a key tool for personalising digital ads), Radio). The planned increase, which the
or to pay a fee for accessing an ad-free directors general of both organisations
version of the website. publicly warned was necessary to avoid
budget cuts and reductions in production
This move has sparked a backlash from the and staff, was included in the draft of the
Office for Personal Data Protection, which so-called ‘major media amendment’, a bill
launched an investigation into the legality that the government pledged to pass by
of the use of the ‘consent or pay’ model by the end of 2024. However, due to
some Czech publishers. The Office issued prolonged obstruction by the opposition
an injunction against Seznam, the largest parties, as well as to a campaign against
Czech digital media company, temporarily the fee increase led by many commercial
banning the company from continuing media organisations, the bill was only
with this practice. Its decision reflected approved by the Chamber of Deputies in
the position taken by the European Data March 2025. Having come into effect in

46
https://english.rozanek.cz/mafra-shuts-down-free-regional-weekly-5plus2-due-to-rising-costs/
47
https://www.lupa.cz/clanky/uoou-setri-ceske-vydavatele-kvuli-pay-or-ok-seznamu-sbirani-souhlasu-predbezne-zakazal/
48
https://www.reflex.cz/clanek/zpravy/127247/uohs-setri-seznam-kvuli-zpusobu-deleni-reklamnich-prijmu-s-vydavateli.html
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital News
Axis Line Report
on both 2025 | Czech Republic
layers: 77
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE Czech TV News (incl. ČT1, ČT24) (public broadcaster) 44
10 Seznam Zpravy 44
11
TV Nova News 12
37 Novinky.cz 10
33
TOP BRANDS
CNN Prima News 10
27 iDnes.cz 13
33
% Weekly usage
Prima News 10
26 Aktualne.cz 10
22
Weekly use Czech Radio News (public broadcaster) 5
13 TN.cz 10
19
TV, radio & print Regional or local newspaper 9
11 Czech TV News online (Ct24.cz) 7
17
3 days per week or more Blesk 6
10 CNN.iprima.cz 6
17
TV, radio & print
Radio Impuls News 5
10 Denik.cz 7
13
Weekly use
Mladá Fronta DNES 5
10 Blesk.cz 5
11
online brands
Evropa 2 News 4
9 iRozhlas.cz 5
9
3 days per week or more
online brands Metro 4
8 Extra.cz 5
8
Deník 5
8 Super.cz 4
8

13%
3
Frekvence 1 News 6 DenikN.cz 5
8
Právo 5 3
Echo24.cz 6
pay for Hospodářské noviny 5 3
Forum24.cz 6
ONLINE NEWS BBC News 4 Lidovky.cz 3 5

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The use of all media types as sources of news, including online platforms and social media, was the lowest since 2016. Smartphones have
now become the primary devices for news.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2015–25 Social media
News podcasts 8% 2015–25* 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 6%
100% 100%
91%
85% 80% 83%
73%
70%
60%
50% 50%
41% 44%
37% 34%
16% 21%
14%
0% 0%
2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots * 2018 figures for computer use were likely overstated due to an error in polling

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Overall trust in news media has increased from an all-time low in 2023, equalling
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
the 11-year average of 33%. On the other hand, several top-positioned individual trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
brands recorded a drop in trust. Despite that, public service media remain among Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
the most trusted brands by Czech news audiences. Aktualne.cz 53% 31% 17%
Blesk 20% 24% 56%
CNN Prima News 57% 24% 20%
Czech Radio News (public broadcaster) 59% 24% 17%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 Czech TV News (public broadcaster) 59% 18% 23%
100% Deník 49% 34% 17%
echo24.cz 38% 38% 24%
Frekvence 1 49% 34% 17%

33%
Hospodářské noviny 55% 30% 15%
50% 39%
33% iDnes.cz 53% 28% 19%
Mlada Fronta DNES 48% 32% 21%
OVERALL TRUST Novinky.cz 51% 28% 20%
0%
=33/48 markets
Radio Impuls 49% 33% 18%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Seznam Zpravy 54% 26% 20%
TV Nova 46% 26% 27%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
10
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 83.96 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

22%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 32% (-4) 66% 4 Instagram 14% (+2) 38%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 19% (-2) 60% 5 Facebook Messenger 8% (-2) 43%
via social, messaging,
3 WhatsApp 14% (-3) 58% 6 X 7% (+1) 12%
or email
78 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

DENMARK
The Danish media market has two strong public broadcasters (DR
and TV2) and several successful commercial brands, which receive
an annual public subsidy. Commercial news organisations are facing
falls in print subscriptions and advertising revenue along with the
loss of online traffic from social media, and fears about the impact of
AI-driven search engines. Company responses involve cost-cutting, Population 5.9m
redundancies, and subscription price increases. Internet penetration 100%

The year 2024 witnessed a major cross- The general state subsidies, totaling €43m Newspapers increasingly rely on the
Nordic merger, as Norwegian local media per year, are awarded to ‘publicistic media’, national Ritzau wire service to provide the
group Amedia, among other suitors i.e. commercial companies meeting a 50% general news which audiences can get
including the local Danish conglomerate threshold of news covering politics, society, from free news services, allowing them to
JFM, acquired the Berlingske news and culture. Smaller subsidiary funds aim concentrate their own journalistic
conglomerate (Berlingske, BT, to support innovation initiatives (€5m, resources on exclusive content. Both
Weekendavisen) from Belgian media group going mostly to digital news start-ups like public broadcasters and private media are
DPD Media. Among other strategic Zetland and Altinget) and struggling free phasing in obligatory login schemes to
benefits, the merger aims at strengthening local weeklies (€7m per year). collect their own data about users.
Berlingske’s digital transformation. The Text-based advertising is losing ground to
acquisition accentuates the move towards An overhaul of the system of state subsidies
video advertising on social media and
cross-Nordic collaboration and has been entrusted to a government
commercial TV channels. The cross-
consolidation, with the Swedish Bonnier committee with representatives of key
platform streaming market, which is the
group owning 51% of Danish financial stakeholders (chaired by Rasmus Kleis
primary way Danes watch audio-visual
newspaper Børsen, and Danish Alrow Nielsen). The committee’s remit requires it
content, is dominated (daily usage) by
Media publishing Danish, Swedish, and to make subsidies more platform neutral
YouTube (21 minutes), TV2 Play (20
Norwegian editions of Altinget. and to continue past efforts to reverse the
minutes), and DR TV (17 minutes), with
trend of increasing numbers of local
Netflix in fourth place (12 minutes).
The JP/Politiken newspaper group, which news deserts.
owns Politiken, Ekstra Bladet, and Jyllands- Danish news organisations are all investing
Posten, is recovering from turmoil within Familiar fault lines in the debate about
heavily in generative AI tools and gradually
the board, after public scandals about public service media came to the fore
implementing them in daily news
exorbitant board fees and governance in February 2025 when DR aired a
operations, including assisting journalists
malpractice. As a result, the chair of the documentary about Denmark’s role as
with interview transcription, news text and
Jyllands-Posten Foundation, who had a colonial power in Greenland, with
headline generation, summarising news
chaired the foundation since 2014, had to controversial claims about gigantic Danish
content, and replacing human proofreaders.
resign after intense criticism. profits from cryolite mining over a 150-year
period. While vindicating anticolonial voices Unlike other countries, where news
Denmark has several successful digital- among Greenlanders, in Denmark organisations are individually seeking deals
born news organisations that continue to widespread condemnation was led by with tech and AI platforms, Danish
see growth in subscriptions, often from right-wing politicians, flouting the arm’s publishers are continuing their collective
younger people. The best known, Zetland, length principle by (successfully) efforts to combat big tech’s unsanctioned
forecasts 40% profit growth in 2025 49 and demanding removal of the documentary use of news organisations’ copyrighted
has launched a sister edition Uusi Juttu in from the DR TV streaming service and firing content and data archives for AI-model
Finland, while Føljeton, which provides a of the DR editors in charge. In April 2025 a training purposes. After deadlocked talks
daily summary alongside irreverent news new Director-General of DR was appointed. with Meta, Google, and Open AI, a state-
analysis, and Frihedsbrevet, which guards Bjarne Corydon was CEO and editor-in-chief mandated conciliation procedure is being
its independence by refusing to receive of the Børsen financial newspaper for seven opened with these platforms, possibly as a
the state subsidy, have seen subscriptions years and previously the Minister of Finance precursor to entering legal proceedings.
rise considerably. in Helle Thorning Schmidt’s social-
democratic government. Kim Christian Schrøder, Mark Blach-
Reflecting harsh competition in a saturated Ørsten, and Mads Kæmsgaard Eberholst
podcast market heavily dominated by DR, Newspapers are responding to decreasing Roskilde University, Denmark
Ekstra Bladet and TV2 have closed their traffic from social media with more
daily news podcasts. However, ambitions differentiated pay models, including bundling
for developing the podcast market remain packages. Politiken and Berlingske,
high among publishers, although respectively, offer readers access to the
willingness to pay may prove an obstacle. New York Times and Wall Street Journal.

49
https://wan-ifra.org/2025/02/future-newsrooms-now-zetlands-lea-korsgaard-on-journalism-as-a-service-and-a-product/
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Denmark
layers: 79
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYK TV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE DR News incl. P1, P3, P4 (main public broadcaster) 60 TV2 News online (incl. regional options) 49
11
TV2 Nyhederne (incl. TV2 News) 52 DR News online 13
46
TOP BRANDS
Regional news via TV2 (Nord, Fyn, Lorry) 26 Ekstra Bladet online 8
29
% Weekly usage
Free local weekly newspaper 15 BT online 7
24
Weekly use Commercial radio news 10 Free local weekly newspaper online 7
10
TV, radio & print Ekstra Bladet 8 Regional or local newspaper online 3
9
3 days per week or more Regional or local newspaper 8 Berlingske online 3
9
TV, radio & print
Berlingske 5 Politiken online 4
9
Weekly use
Politiken 4 Jyllands-Posten online 3
8
online brands
Jyllands-Posten 4 Børsen online 5
3 days per week or more
online brands BBC News 4 Altinget 5
CNN 3 Avisen online 5

19%
Børsen 3 BBC News online 4
Radio 4 3 Zetland 4
pay for Fagblade (fx Akademikerbladet, Fagbladet 3F, osv.) 3 Information online 3
ONLINE NEWS Other news media from outside Denmark 3 Dagens online 3

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Consumption of traditional media such as television news and print continues to fall over time, with online consumption not making up the
gap. Facebook remains the most important social network for news (27%), though usage is down again (-5pp) this year.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2013–25 Social media
News podcasts 12% 2013–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 4%
100% 100%
85%
81% 82%
77%
61% 65%
57%
50% 49% 50%
44% 43%
31% 34%
25%
14%
0% 0%
2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust in news media remains steady at a relatively high level by international
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
standards. At the brand level, the largest and most trusted brands covered by our trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
survey remain public broadcasters DR and TV2, with digital-born brands Zetland Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
and Altinget registering the largest (5pp) growth in its trust. Tabloid newspapers are Altinget.dk 60% 29% 11%
widely used but tend to be less trusted. Avisen 46% 34% 20%
Berlingske 70% 22% 8%
Børsen 73% 20% 6%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 BT 43% 25% 32%
100% DR News 85% 10% 6%
Ekstra Bladet 36% 23% 41%
Information 67% 24% 9%

56%
57% 56% Jyllands-Posten 69% 22% 9%
50%
Kristeligt Dagblad 57% 28% 15%
Politiken 70% 21% 8%
OVERALL TRUST Regional or local newspaper 69% 23% 8%
0%
4/48 markets Regional TV2 News 81% 13% 6%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ TV2 Nyhederne (incl. TV2 News) 82% 12% 7%
Zetland 58% 30% 12%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
6
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 86.93 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

11%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 27% (-5) 71% 4 Facebook Messenger 6% (-2) 57%
SHARE NEWS 2 Instagram 9% (-) 46% 5 TikTok 5% (+2) 14%
via social, messaging,
3 YouTube 7% (-3) 44% 6 Reddit 5% (+2) 13%
or email
80 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

FINLAND
Finland’s news media environment features a strong regional press, a
strong public service broadcaster (Yle), one widely read national daily
(Helsingin Sanomat), and two popular evening tabloids, both reaching
over half of the adult population. The shift to digital remains gradual,
with digital revenues for newspapers accounting for less than one-
third of their total income.50 Population 5.5m
Internet penetration 94%

While Google and Meta account for a grown to nearly 16,000 by March. Yle has also faced political pressure, with
significant portion of online advertising The subscribers or ‘members’ receive some representatives of the nationalist
revenues, Finnish media companies are two news roundups and a couple of Finns Party (who participate in
seeking ways to increase digital in-depth stories every day. All stories government) accusing it of promoting a
subscriptions. A current trend is offering are also available in audio format. green-leftist agenda, while the
customers bundles of several products, The subscription currently costs €135 government has called for funding cuts as
a strategy that has been successful in per year, but those who state that they part of broader public sector austerity
Sweden and Norway. In early 2025, are low-income can pay less. Uusi Juttu measures. A parliamentary working group
Finland’s largest publisher, Sanoma, emphasises its democratic mission and reviewed Yle’s public service remit,
followed suit by introducing a new bundling aims to provide an accessible summary funding, and its relationship with
offer, ‘Kaikki+’ (All+), which includes all 15 of the most important news along with commercial media. After difficulties in
of Sanoma’s news media, magazines, and context, rather than a continuous news reaching agreement, the working group’s
subscriptions to streaming and audio flow that could overwhelm users. report published in September 2024,
services. The subscription costs €24.99 per According to our survey, 4% of those recommended a €66m cut per annum by
month, which is only about €4 more than paying for online news subscribe to 2027. Had the group not reached a
the most comprehensive digital-only Uusi Juttu. This share is similar to that resolution, the government would have
subscription to Helsingin Sanomat. of the prestigious news magazine Suomen imposed the budget cuts, making Yle
According to our survey, 16% of Finnish Kuvalehti (6%), which also aims to provide susceptible to governmental pressure.
respondents who are not yet paying for in-depth understanding of current issues. Despite the cuts Yle must now implement,
digital news say that access to multiple it retains its independence from the
news sites at a reasonable price would The audio news start-up Briif ceased
respective government.
encourage them to subscribe. For the operations in September 2024 due to
under-35s, the proportion rises to 25%. insufficient market demand. Launched in In January 2025, Yle announced the
October 2023, Briif curated newspaper closure of 309 posts, representing 10% of
Most Finnish newsrooms now use AI and magazine stories aimed at young its total workforce and resulting in savings
technologies. In addition to transcribing women and delivered them in audio of €27m. Further cuts are expected.52
interview recordings, creating headlines, format. The service had contracts with Yle’s half-billion-euro budget is primarily
proofreading, and making summaries, several publishers in Finland and funded by the annual Yle tax, which
several more advanced tools for reporters internationally. amounts to a maximum of €160 collected
have also been developed. The evening from Finnish taxpayers.
tabloid paper, Iltalehti, uses a tool that The position of Finnish public service
media Yle has been a continuous issue in Esa Reunanen
analyses the emotional response a
Finnish media policy. Private media Tampere University, Finland
headline may produce in readers.
Additionally, it assesses whether the companies have blamed the public service
piece is provocative, sad, analytical, broadcaster for unfair competition in the
breaking news, empathetic, questioning, digital world, and Yle was obliged to limit
useful, entertaining, or constructive. its online news in text following a change
Sanoma, for its part, has developed a in the law in August 2022. The origins of
tool that monitors sources, such as this lie in the Finnish Media Federation’s
municipal decision-making documents, 2017 complaint to the EU claiming that
to find potentially newsworthy items for Yle’s online news in text form contravened
their journalists.51 EU state aid legislation. In 2024, the
Finnish Media Federation made a new
Danish Zetland is the main shareholder in complaint claiming that Yle still publishes
a new Finnish start-up, Uusi Juttu (New online news in text form as it did before
Story), which launched in January 2025 the law changed.
with around 12,000 subscribers and had

50
https://suomenlehdisto.fi/taantuma-ja-inflaatio-heikensivat-vaalivuoden-myyntia/
51
https://suomenlehdisto.fi/listasimme-suomalaisten-toimitusten-kiinnostavimmat-tekoalyratkaisut-apurit-tunnistavat-tunteita-vahtivat-uutisia-ja-haistavat-pian-myos-
tilauspotentiaalin/
52
https://yle.fi/a/74-20139113
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis LineDigital
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE Yle News (public broadcaster) 63
13 Ilta-Sanomat online 60
10
MTV3 News 14
51 Iltalehti online 11
55
TOP BRANDS
Free city papers 17
22 Yle News online (incl. news via Areena) 12
41
% Weekly usage
Ilta-Sanomat 5
17 Helsingin Sanomat online 7
29
Weekly use Commercial radio news 8
17 MTV News online (incl. Katsomo News) 11
25
TV, radio & print Iltalehti 5
16 Local newspapers online 5
13
3 days per week or more Local newspapers 8
13 Regional newspapers online 5
13
TV, radio & print
Helsingin Sanomat 5
13 Kauppalehti online 5
10
Weekly use
Regional newspapers 4
12 Free city papers online 6
9
online brands
BBC News 4 Commercial radio news online 4
7
3 days per week or more
online brands Suomen Kuvalehti 4 Talouselämä online 4
6
CNN 3 Uusi Suomi online 4
6

21%
Kauppalehti 3 MSN News 5
Talouselämä 3 Other foreign TV news online 5
pay for Other foreign TV news channels 3 Yle TV News: 56% BBC News online 5
ONLINE NEWS Maaseudun Tulevaisuus 2 Yle Radio News: 24% Foreign newspapers online 4

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

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The use of online news sources is unchanged at almost 90% weekly reach while television news and the printed press continue their
slow decline.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2015–25 Social media
News podcasts 7% 2014–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 3%
100% 100%
90% 89%
80% 82%
75%
62% 62%
53%
50% 50%
40% 44% 41%
25% 23% 25%

0% 0%
2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Finnish news remains the most highly trusted among the countries in Europe,
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
with no major changes from 2022. The news media in Finland are not politically trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
polarised, so any politically based scepticism felt by a minority towards the news Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
media targets all the major news brands. For others, scepticism seems to stem Commercial radio news 68% 18% 14%
from an outlet’s tabloid image. Free city papers 56% 26% 18%
Helsingin Sanomat 78% 9% 12%
Hufvudstadsbladet 67% 21% 11%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 Iltalehti 61% 15% 24%
100% Ilta-Sanomat 64% 15% 22%
Kauppalehti 78% 14% 8%

68% 67% Local newspaper 79% 13% 7%

67%
Maaseudun Tulevaisuus 70% 19% 11%
50%
MTV News 78% 11% 11%
Regional newspaper 76% 15% 8%
OVERALL TRUST Suomen Kuvalehti 76% 16% 8%
0%
2/48 markets Talouselämä 77% 14% 9%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Uusi Suomi 61% 23% 16%
Yle News (public broadcaster) 83% 6% 11%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
5
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 87.18 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

24%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 27% (-1) 67% 4 Instagram 12% (+2) 50%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 15% (-) 64% 5 TikTok 7% (+1) 22%
via social, messaging,
3 WhatsApp 12% (-2) 77% 6 X 7% (-) 14%
or email
82 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

FRANCE
France has undergone a year of extreme political turbulence.
Following the far right’s victory in the June European elections,
President Macron called early parliamentary elections in June and
July 2024. His gamble backfired since his party failed to win a majority
and it has proved impossible to assemble a coalition government.
Since then, France has had four prime ministers in less than a year Population 65m
and most media legislation has stalled. Internet penetration 87%

On the face of it, political turmoil, Journalistic ethics were to the fore when attracting new subscribers.55 Médiapart,
combined with Paris hosting the Olympics Arcom, the audio-visual regulator, the digital-born media created 17 years ago,
in July 2024 and France’s most covered cancelled the licence of the C8 TV now has 245,000 subscribers and 150
rape trial in years, should have made channel, owned by billionaire Vincent journalists, working mostly on investigative
2024 a bumper year for French news Bolloré, on grounds of inadequate pieces, and sees its success as linked to
publishers. But outside these major editorial oversight, particularly of a show readers looking to better understand the
events, the general picture was less presented by TV star Cyril Hanouna, who current international crises.56
encouraging, with increasing distrust, has been accused of spreading falsehoods,
volatile advertising revenues, and little French people have the lowest level of
and of violence and insults towards
change in the low numbers (11%) prepared news literacy training in our survey, with
guests, and a lack of balance in the issues
to pay for digital news. just 11% saying they received education/
debated on air.54
training on how to use news. The
The Olympics certainly benefited L’Equipe, Meanwhile, many journalists from the impressive success of explainers and
France’s daily sport newspaper, with 250 24-hour channel BFM TV, bought in 2023 formats like HugoDécrypte’s YouTube
journalists: it sold 300,000 copies a day by the shipping magnate Rodolphe Saadé, videos reflects the strong desire,
during the games and had a total 210m exercised their right to voluntary particularly of younger audiences, to be
visits to its app and website. It was also a redundancy after a change of owner, but informed, but in a more relatable way. A
historic opportunity for France audiences are falling and a new team has fifth (22%) of under-35s survey
Télévisions, one of the official media been hired. Saadé’s group has partnered respondents had seen him commenting
partners for the Olympics, which were with Mistral AI, a French start-up, to apply on or discussing the news in the previous
watched by nearly 60m French people.53 AI to improve multiple sectors, from week. A 2024 report from the
The Paris Olympics were also a shipping to logistics and media. government-appointed Estates General
breakthrough moment for an army of of News recommended that serious news
online content creators on TikTok and Local journalism seems to be the new influencers should be recognised as news
Instagram whose official access reflected holy grail. Saadé’s BFM now has nine local sources, but the political crisis means no
the increasing use of mobile phones for TV stations which are seen as news action has been taken. Meanwhile
news in France. audience drivers, with hyperlocal stories French public debate is becoming ever
and interviews with viewers in the major more polarised.
The Mazan mass rape trial turned into French cities. France Télévisions and
massive media event in France and Radio France, the main public Alice Antheaume
globally. Every detail of the four-month- broadcasters, also committed to more Executive Dean, Sciences Po Journalism School
hearing was reported on radio, TV, and on regional journalism, converting their 44
news websites. The 72-year-old Gisele radio stations into TV channels now
Pélicot, who survived nearly a decade of branded ICI, offering in-depth regional
rapes by dozens of men, waived her right and local coverage. Finally, Ouest-France,
to anonymity. She also agreed that the the best-selling paper in France, is
public and press could be present when launching a new TV channel in
video evidence of the crimes was shown in September, also focused on including
court. These decisions boosted the media voices from the regions.
coverage, with 180 media organisations
attending, of which 86 were from abroad. On the subscription front, Le Figaro now
The trial raised many ethical questions, has 294,000 subscribers and there are
including whether journalists should give 580,000 for Le Monde, where digital
complete names of defendants and how revenue is expected to cover the €72m cost
to avoid people tracking them or their of the entire newsroom within two years.
families down via social media. Le Monde’s CEO recently credited the
current political turmoil in France for

53
https://www.cbnews.fr/medias/image-paris-2024-medias-tv-radio-presse-leurs-audiences-86525
54
https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/french-tv-channel-shutdown-causes-outcry-right-2025-02-20/
55
https://pressgazette.co.uk/paywalls/le-monde-subscriptions-digital-ceo-louis-dreyfus/
56
https://www.20minutes.fr/arts-stars/medias/4142978-20250311-mediapart-site-investigation-annee-2024-celle-tous-records
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis LineDigital
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layers:Report 2025 | France 83
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE France Télévisions (public broadcaster) 32
8 20 minutes online 14
6
TF1 News (incl. TF1, LCI, TMC) 8
31 Le Monde online 6
12
TOP BRANDS
BFM TV News 8
27 TF1 News online 3
12
% Weekly usage
M6 News 8
22 France Info (public broadcaster) 4
11
Weekly use Regional or local public television 8
18 Regional or local newspaper online 4
10
TV, radio & print CNews 4
17 BFM TV online 4
10
3 days per week or more Public radio news (France Inter, Culture, Bleu/ICI, etc.) 7
17 Brut 6
10
TV, radio & print
Regional or local newspaper 149 Le Parisien online 4
9
Weekly use
Commercial radio news (RTL, etc.) 4
13 Yahoo! News 4
9
online brands
20 minutes 6
10 Le Figaro online 4
9
3 days per week or more
online brands Arte (public service television) 5
10 CNews online 2
8
Le Monde 4
8 M6 online 3
8

11%
Le Figaro 37 MSN News 4
8
France 24 37 Ouest France online 3
7
pay for L’Equipe 37 Médiapart online 4
7
ONLINE NEWS Canal+ 63 Konbini 4
6

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Political turmoil has not benefited TV news, with weekly use down 4pp to 59%. Social media are beneficiaries, driven by younger audiences
via Instagram (+5pp), TikTok (+4pp), and YouTube (+3pp).

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2013–25 Social media
News podcasts 9% 2013–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 4%
100% 100%
84%
72%
68% 64%
59% 56%
50% 46% 50% 50%
37%
24% 24%
18% 13% 11%
0% 0%
2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
France has one of the lowest levels of trust in news in our survey (joint 41st out of
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
48 markets). This score reflects low and declining levels of trust in institutions. trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
Local newspapers and public broadcasters remain broadly trusted while Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
commercial TV channels CNews and BFM are distrusted by large sections of the 20 minutes 42% 38% 19%
population due to perceptions of biased or partisan news coverage. BFM TV news 40% 22% 38%
CNews 41% 24% 35%
France Bleu/ICI 47% 36% 16%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 France Info 55% 27% 17%
100% France Inter 51% 30% 19%
France Télévisions News 58% 25% 17%
Le Figaro 43% 35% 22%

29%
Le HuffPost 38% 40% 23%
50%
38% Le Monde 49% 32% 19%
29% Le Parisien/Aujourd hui en France 41% 39% 20%
OVERALL TRUST M6 News 45% 34% 21%
0%
41/48 markets Médiapart 47% 31% 22%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Regional or local newspaper 61% 27% 12%
TF1 News 46% 31% 23%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
25
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 76.62 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

23%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 33% (+1) 61% 4 WhatsApp 17% (+1) 51%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 24% (+3) 53% 5 TikTok 12% (+4) 22%
via social, messaging,
3 Instagram 21% (+5) 42% 6 Facebook Messenger 11% (+1) 35%
or email
84 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

GERMANY
The digital transformation of Germany’s media landscape continues,
increasing pressure on the press, particularly local newspapers.
Meanwhile, the ongoing reform of public broadcasting is prompting
PSBs to work harder to retain audiences, thereby further intensifying
competition with private news providers.
Population 83m
Internet penetration 94%

The collapse of the German coalition recent decades, with newsrooms being responded by inserting a new section on
government following a dispute over the downsized or merged.59 For instance, AI in its Press Code (Pressekodex), which
federal budget in 2024 paved the way for Medienholding Süd is planning to cut up sets ethical guidelines for journalistic
early elections in February 2025, just a to 45 jobs in its editorial offices at work. It emphasises that editorial
few weeks after our survey was in the Stuttgarter Zeitung, Stuttgarter responsibility remains with the
field, meaning some caution is required Nachrichten, and other local newspapers publishers, regardless of how the content
when interpreting the data. At 83%, the over the next three years, equivalent to is produced. While no mandatory
election saw Germany’s highest voter 5% of the current 300 strong workforce labelling for AI-generated texts is
turnout in decades, with the conservative each year60. Alongside e-papers, more currently required, the Press Council now
party emerging as the winner. The innovative business models are being requires AI-generated images to be
far-right AfD, a party monitored by developed: the national weekly marked as being purely illustrative to
German security services on suspicion of newspaper Die Zeit has launched a prevent misleading readers. The Press
extremism, came in a historic second podcast subscription giving access to all Council recorded a record number of
place. Against the backdrop of the AfD’s paid podcasts from its media brands, serious violations of the Press Code in
growing popularity, Elon Musk’s influence these are also included for digital 2024, issuing 86 reprimands (Rügen), up
on the pre-election campaign attracted subscribers at no extra cost. from 73 the previous year. While the
particular attention. In addition to a live council reviews complaints from the
interview with the AfD’s leading Germany’s public service broadcasters public and can issue reprimands for
candidate on his platform X, the US are facing reforms that seem likely to violations of journalistic ethics, it has no
billionaire supported the AfD in a guest both reduce their remit and funding. In legal enforcement power. Many of the
opinion piece for Axel Springer’s Welt am October 2024 the Broadcasting complaints in the past year were related
Sonntag, prompting the newspaper’s Commission of the federal states agreed to reports on terrorist attacks in
comment editor to resign in protest. on a draft contract to reform the PSB Germany, as well as coverage of the
system which would reduce the number Middle East conflict, with several media
Meanwhile, the shift from print to digital of their channels to cut costs. In outlets receiving reprimands for
continues in the German newspaper December 2024 the federal states agreed misinformation or unethical reporting.
industry. As in 2024, 13% of our survey a new simplified funding model which will At the same time, Reporters Without
respondents said they are paying for also freeze the licence fee until 2027. Borders has documented an increase in
online news, with Bild, and Der Spiegel However, the PSBs have lodged a violent attacks and online hate speech
mentioned most frequently, along with separate constitutional complaint about against journalists covering the Middle
regional and local daily newspapers. In the failure to implement the 2024 licence East conflict in Germany.
Q4 of 2024, the print circulation of daily fee increase as recommended by the
newspapers continued to decline, but the independent commission of experts Julia Behre, Sascha Hölig, and
circulation of digital newspapers (KEF). One response by the PSBs has been Judith Möller
(‘e-papers’) increased (+23% compared to to work harder to retain news audiences. Leibniz Institute for Media Research,
the previous year).57 Leading industry For instance, Germany’s most-watched Hans Bredow Institute, Hamburg
representatives expect the importance of TV news bulletin, ARD Tagesschau, has
e-papers to grow further, as efforts introduced a new approach to news
continue to move older print subscribers presentation, with simpler language, a
across to them, since they generate more engaging presentation style, and a
higher sales revenue compared to other greater focus on positive news.
digital subscriptions and save paper,
printing, and delivery costs.58 While While publishers are increasing
Germany has not yet experienced ‘news investment in AI technologies in their
deserts’, the number of independent local newsrooms,61 the German Press Council
newspapers has been declining over (Presserat) – the self-regulatory body for
print media and their digital outlets – has

57
https://ivw.de/print/quartalsauflagen/pressemitteilungen/auflagenzahlen-des-4-quartals-2024
58
https://medien.epd.de/article/2695
59
https://www.wuestenradar.de/wp-content/uploads/sites/18/2024/11/Wuestenradar-2024-web.pdf
60
https://kress.de/news/beitrag/148750-stellenabbau-bei-medienholding-sued-redaktionen-von-stuttgarter-zeitung-und-stuttgarter-nachrichten-sind-betroffen.html
61
https://medien.epd.de/article/2695
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Germany
layers: 85
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE ARD News (Tagesschau, Tagesthemen, etc.) 39
10 ARD News online (tagesschau.de, etc.) 17
5
ZDF News (heute, heute-journal, etc.) 11
32 t-online 4
14
TOP BRANDS
RTL News 7
23 Bild.de 4
14
% Weekly usage
Regional or local newspaper 8
21 n-tv.de 4
13
Weekly use Public regional radio news 8
20 Web.de 6
12
TV, radio & print Public regional TV news 9
19 Spiegel online 5
11
3 days per week or more n-tv 7
18 Focus online 4
10
TV, radio & print
Commercial radio news 6
16 Regional or local newspaper online 3
10
Weekly use
WELT (formerly N24) 4
12 Welt.de 4
10
online brands
Free local newspaper 6
8 GMX 3
8
3 days per week or more
online brands Commercial regional TV news 4
8 ZDF News online (heute.de, etc.) 3
8
ProSieben Newstime 3
7 ZEIT online 4
7

13%
Bild/Bild am Sonntag 3
7 Public regional TV news websites 4
7
Der Spiegel 3
7 Sueddeutsche.de 4
6
pay for Focus 2 5 Rtl.de (incl. rtlaktuell.de) 2 5
ONLINE NEWS CNN 2 5 FAZ.NET 2 5

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The weekly reach of TV, online, and social media as a source of news has generally remained stable for the past few years, while print news
continues to decline.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2013–25 Social media
News podcasts 9% 2013–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 4%
100% 100%

82%
66% 71% 69%
63% 66%
61%
50% 50% 52%

33%
28%
22%
18% 19% 10%
0% 0%
2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust in news remains broadly stable at 45%, but is still well below the peak at the
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Public service news, together with regional and trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
local daily newspapers, are the most trusted sources in the list surveyed, whereas Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
the tabloid Bild is least trusted. ARD Tagesschau 65% 15% 20%
Bild 23% 21% 55%
Der Spiegel 53% 26% 21%
Die ZEIT 56% 27% 17%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 FAZ 52% 29% 18%
100% Focus 51% 29% 21%
n-tv 60% 25% 15%
Regional or local newspaper 63% 23% 14%

45%
60%
RTL aktuell 47% 26% 27%
50% 45%
Stern 48% 28% 24%
Süddeutsche Zeitung 55% 28% 17%
OVERALL TRUST t-online 44% 34% 22%
0%
=15/48 markets
web.de 36% 37% 28%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ WELT 53% 27% 20%
ZDF heute 63% 17% 20%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
11
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 83.85 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

18%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 YouTube 18% (-3) 51% 4 Instagram 12% (+1) 37%
SHARE NEWS 2 WhatsApp 15% (-) 73% 5 TikTok 5% (-) 15%
via social, messaging,
3 Facebook 15% (-1) 42% 6 X 5% (-) 10%
or email
86 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

GREECE
The Greek media market is characterised by digital brand
fragmentation, high use of social media for news, and the lowest
trust in news among our 48 markets, due to political polarisation
and concerns about undue influence from politicians and
powerful businessmen.
Population 10.3m
Internet penetration 85%

This year’s survey was conducted during which only accepted that one headline several months. These financial
mass demonstrations in Greece marking harmed Dimitriadis’s reputation and difficulties reflect broader struggles
the second anniversary of the deadly train awarded €3,000 from each defendant. within Greece’s left-wing media but also
crash in Tempi in 2023, with widespread the wider political landscape.
demands directed primarily at the Podcasts are becoming prominent among
government for greater accountability Greeks online. After a period during which A code of ethics for the use of AI in the
and improved railway safety. Trust in they were established as a source of newsroom is about to be presented by
institutions, including the justice system, entertainment, comedy, and lifestyle the Greek Federation of Editors’ Unions.
is near all-time lows, and public criticism content, publishers have begun creating Despite some attempts to formally
has also extended to the news media and news podcasts. News organisations like integrate AI in Greek newsrooms (e.g.
their coverage of the incident and its To Vima, Kathimerini, and LiFO have translation services, the creation of
aftermath. Trust in news media has developed their own current affairs audio articles), its introduction has been
remained very low in Greece throughout podcasts. For example To Vima Simera, proceeding slowly and currently there
the ten years it has been measured by the which provides a daily overview of a are no publicly disclosed agreements
Digital News Report, and this year was no topical issue, and LiFO Politics, with between Greek publishers and AI
exception – only 22% of respondents said in-depth interviews about politics. companies for content licensing.
they trust the news, the joint lowest level Overall, 9% of Greeks online now use
Social media continue to be used by most
among 48 countries. podcasts for news every week. However,
Greeks online to get news (64% overall).
despite these initiatives in news and
This year also saw significant declines in YouTube (30%), Instagram (21%), and
current affairs podcasts, entertainment
brand trust across all news media outlets TikTok (17%) are now increasingly used
and lifestyle-focused ones remain the
we measured, including for the public for news, particularly among younger
most successful.
service broadcaster (ERT) (-11 percentage audiences. Alongside this trend, a growing
points). During survey fieldwork, there Greece lacks a standardised system to far-right landscape of YouTuber news
was uproar about the public service measure website traffic and unique visits influencers has emerged, many of whom
broadcaster and its perceived lack of to online media. This can make it harder have ties to the now-defunct Neo-Nazi
emphasis on the first demonstration in for publishers to compete for advertising party Golden Dawn, and spread
Tempi. The generally pro-government revenue against platforms such as conspiracy theories. Many of these
commercial broadcaster SKAI also saw Facebook which are able to leverage YouTubers have larger online audiences
large a decrease in brand trust (-10pp). detailed demographic and user data. than major news media organisations.
All outlets, however, saw trust fall. Greek digital advertisers’ unions – also Their videos are sensationalist and often
affected by this issue – are taking revolve around topics like ultra-
A Greek court dismissed a lawsuit filed by initiatives to establish a commonly conservative Orthodoxy, Turkey, or
the former director of the Greek prime agreed-upon measure of website traffic.62 support of Trump’s and Putin’s policies.63
minister’s office, Grigoris Dimitriadis,
Changes occurred in the left-wing news Antonis Kalogeropoulos
against journalists and media outlets for
media ecosystem. Rosa Progressive, a Free University Brussels (VUB)
their coverage of the wiretapping scandal
relatively large digital-born news outlet
in 2022 that led to his resignation. The
with a significant social media following,
lawsuit was deemed the SLAPP (Strategic
was sold to Politis Media Group, which
Lawsuit Against Public Participation) of
primarily operates in entertainment and
the year at the European Anti-SLAPP
advertising. Avgi, a historically left-wing
Conference in 2022. The Greek court
newspaper part-owned by the left-wing
determined that the media reports were
party Syriza, closed its daily print edition.
neither false nor defamatory and adhered
Employees of both Avgi and the Syriza-
to ethical journalism standards. A second
owned news radio station Sto Kokkino
lawsuit asking for €950,000 in damages
demonstrated against being unpaid for
was mostly rejected by another court,

62
https://www.e-tetradio.gr/Article/42388/eniaia-metrhsh-episkepsimothtas-sta-sites-sthn-ellada
63
https://insidestory.gr/article/oi-ellines-trampikoi-poy-saronoyn-YouTube
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis LineDigital
on bothNews
layers:Report 2025 | Greece 87
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE MEGA TV News 35
12 Newsbomb.gr 22
12
SKAI 14
33 In.gr 11
21
TOP BRANDS
Alpha News 12
29 Proto Thema online 10
20
% Weekly usage
ANT1 News 13
28 News247.gr 9
19
Weekly use ERT 11
27 ERT News online 7
17
TV, radio & print Open News 11
24 Newsit.gr 9
17
3 days per week or more Star News 11
24 Kathimerini online 9
16
TV, radio & print
EPT NEWS (ERT NEWS) 8
21 Zougla.gr 9
15
Weekly use
Regional or local newspaper 14
17 Iefimerida.gr 8
14
online brands
Real News (print and radio) 6
10 Lifo.gr 8
14
3 days per week or more
online brands Proto Thema 7
10 Mixanitouxronou.gr 8
13
To Vima 7
10 Naftemporiki online 6
12

7%
Kathimerini 7
9 SKAI News online 6
12
Ta Nea 6
8 CNN Greece (CNN.gr) 7
12
pay for BBC News 4
7 Capital.gr 7
12
ONLINE NEWS 3
Other local radio news 6 Parapolitika.gr 8
12

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

METHODOLOGY NOTE Tisa Sans Pro Light
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Light
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking
90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White
We introduced education quotas in 2023 to make data more representative of national populations. Part of the declines in reach in the
sources chart between 2022 and 2023 will be because there are more people with lower levels of education in our sample now, who typically
have lower interest in news.
SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2016–25 Social media
News podcasts 9% 2016–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 6%
100% 96% 100%
84% 81%
74% 72%
66% 64% 65%
50% 48% 50% 47%
37%
31% 28%
11%
0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Greece still has the lowest levels of trust in news across 48 markets (along with
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
Hungary). Trust is low across all groups, but even lower among younger and left-wing trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
respondents. Local and regional news is trusted more than other specific brands Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
surveyed, highlighting the brand weaknesses of both legacy and digital-born outlets. Alpha News 40% 28% 33%
Ant1 News 38% 28% 35%
Efimerida ton Syntakton 39% 29% 32%
ERT News 42% 23% 35%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2016–25 in.gr 40% 30% 30%
100% Kathimerini 43% 27% 30%
MEGA 40% 25% 35%
news247.gr 39% 34% 28%

22%
Newsbomb.gr 34% 32% 34%
50%
Proto Thema 38% 27% 36%
Regional or local newspaper 49% 30% 21%
20% 22% OVERALL TRUST SKAI News 30% 21% 49%
0%
=48/48 markets
Star TV 35% 30% 35%
2016 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Ta Nea 39% 30% 31%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and

89
10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM Score: ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
INDEX SCORE 2025 55.37 / 180 were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

26%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 44% (-) 74% 4 Viber 17% (-1) 62%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 30% (+1) 68% 5 TikTok 17% (+3) 41%
via social, messaging,
3 Instagram 21% (+1) 56% 6 Facebook Messenger 15% (-4) 55%
or email
88 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

HUNGARY
Hungary’s political landscape underwent a dramatic
transformation in 2024 following a major scandal and the
unexpected emergence of a challenger to Prime Minister Viktor
Orbán – with social media playing a leading role in the process.
Meanwhile, attacks on independent media outlets have intensified.
Population 10m
Internet penetration 92%

For years Viktor Orbán’s government has The ruling Fidesz party emerged as the and international partners in the
been highly successful in shaping the EU’s largest political advertiser in the five EU-funded ‘The Eastern Frontier
political narrative through direct and months before the European elections on Initiative’ of conducting ‘information
indirect control of much of the media Google platforms. On Facebook, the warfare’ and of collaborating with foreign
market including the public service pro-government side spent €1m in five secret services. Additionally, police
media, and by putting pressure on months on promoting posts discrediting obstructed Telex.hu journalists covering a
non-government-aligned outlets. But in Magyar, and a similar amount spreading public campaign event in May, physically
February 2024 independent media narratives about ‘pro-war EU politicians preventing them from questioning the
outlets revealed how President Novák, wanting to start World War 3’.65 Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
a close ally of Orbán, had granted a
pardon to a man implicated in a child This campaign extended beyond social Prime Minister Orbán filed defamation
sexual abuse case. Public outrage led to media. For example, the pro-government lawsuits against media outlets for citing
Novák’s resignation along with Justice news portal Mandiner.hu published 139 an Austrian newspaper interview where
Minister Judit Varga and social media articles featuring Magyar during just ten the managing director of the Spar grocery
influencers organised the largest street days in March, while the public company claimed that Viktor Orbán had
protest in recent years. broadcaster presented Fidesz campaign requested that a relative be allowed to
videos as ordinary segments in its news invest in Spar’s Hungarian subsidiary.
Social media platforms also facilitated programmes. Billboards all over the
the emergence of opposition leader Péter country promoted Fidesz’s message that In the media market, the third most widely
Magyar as a formidable challenger to the opposition, led by Magyar, would used online news source, 24.hu, introduced
Prime Minister Orbán. Magyar gave his ‘drag Hungary into war’. Fidesz ended up a premium paywall section, joining
breakthrough interview not to traditional winning the European elections, but with independent outlets already operating
media but to an independent YouTube a narrower margin than expected, and paywalls successfully, including hvg.hu and
channel, Partizán. Partizán is an with Magyar’s new party placed second. 444.hu. Audience payments are becoming
increasingly influential independent voice increasingly important as other revenue
on the media market. Since its inception Independent media faced increasing sources are drying up: state advertising is
in 2018, it has been experimenting with pressure throughout 2024 and earlier controlled by the government, and USAID
various formats and topics. Now it is stigmatisation of media outlets accepting (an important funder in the civil sector in
among the top ten most-used news foreign funding was taken to a new level. Hungary) has been suspended by the
sources in our survey. The interview with As the EU sued Hungary over the 2023 Trump administration. Commercial
Péter Magyar garnered over 2.7 million Sovereignty Protection Act, the newly broadcaster RTL shifted its much-used
views, extraordinary in a country of established Sovereignty Protection Office portal rtl.hu towards entertainment,
around 10 million people. Since that first validated press freedom concerns by citing ‘business decisions’, leaving just a
interview, Magyar has leveraged social accusing independent media of harming limited news service. It has also expanded
media to circumvent traditional media Hungary’s sovereignty, claiming they its premium streaming service RTL+.
barriers, reaching hundreds of thousands propagated ‘Western pro-war narratives’ In pro-government media, Mathias
directly through Facebook and YouTube about Ukraine. In June, the Office Corvinus Collegium, a private, yet taxpayer-
livestreams and posts. launched a ‘comprehensive investigation’ funded institution, acquired majority
against the anti-corruption watchdog stakes in the well-regarded but not
Pro-government media initially Átlátszó. The resulting report attempts to especially influential radio station
downplayed the Novak scandal. When discredit independent journalism by Inforádió and purchased the right-wing
this failed, they and pro-government labelling public information requests Mandiner newspaper.
influencers launched a smear campaign espionage and accusing independent
against Magyar that merged with journalists of being part of a ‘foreign Judit Szakács
European and local election campaigns influence network’.66 In August, the CEU Democracy Institute
and reached extraordinary proportions.64 pro-government media accused 444.hu

64
https://www.barrons.com/news/dad-are-you-a-traitor-orban-rival-faces-smear-campaigns-7f2fd95c
65
Political Capital, ‘Fidesz & Co. flooded social media with anti-Western hostile disinformation in Hungary’s election campaign, reaching EU spending records’. https://
politicalcapital.hu/pc-admin/source/documents/Uncovering_analyzing_debunking_and_researching_sponsored_disinfo_project_summary_2024.pdf
66
https://szuverenitasvedelmihivatal.hu/dokumentumok/the-impact-of-atlatszos-activities-on-hungarian-sovereignty.pdf
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Hungary
layers: 89
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE RTL 36
12 telex.hu 28
13
TV2 9
21 index.hu 14
27
TOP BRANDS
ATV 8
19 24.hu 14
24
% Weekly usage
Rádió 1 6
15 444.hu 13
23
Weekly use Retro Rádió 136 hvg.hu 12
19
TV, radio & print HírTV 6
12 rtl.hu 10
19
3 days per week or more MTV (public TV news) 5
11 origo.hu 10
18
TV, radio & print
Duna TV 6
10 atv.hu 6
13
Weekly use
Blikk 7
9 blikk.hu 9
13
online brands
HVG 6
9 Partizán 7
12
3 days per week or more
online brands Regional or local newspaper 6
8 tv2.hu 6
12
Magyar Rádió (public radio news) 3
8 portfolio.hu 6
11

8%
Euronews 4
7 hirado.hu (public broadcaster) 4
8
Regional or local television or radio 4
6 hírtv.hu 3
7
pay for Metropol 4 5 atlatszo.hu 5
7
ONLINE NEWS CNN 4 5 Regional or local newspaper website 5
7

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

METHODOLOGY NOTE Tisa Sans Pro Light
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Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Light
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking
90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White
We introduced education quotas in 2023 to make data more representative of national populations. Part of the declines in reach in the
sources chart between 2022 and 2023 will be because there are more people with lower levels of education in our sample now, who typically
have lower interest in news.
SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2016–25 Social media
News podcasts 9% 2016–25* 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 4%
100% 100%
88%
79% 75%
72% 74%
64% 61%
54%
50% 50% 43%
43%
27%
23%
12%
7%
0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots * 2018 figures for computer use were likely overstated due to an error in polling

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
With no improvement in media freedom, overall trust in news has continued to
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
decrease and remains the lowest among the markets surveyed (together with trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
Greece). The trust scores of all the brands covered decreased, sometimes Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
significantly; trust in the public broadcaster dropped 7pp from last year to just 23%. 24.hu 38% 32% 30%
444.hu 37% 29% 34%
ATV 35% 30% 35%
Blikk 17% 29% 54%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2016–25 HírTV 26% 25% 50%
100% HVG 44% 29% 27%
Index.hu 31% 30% 39%
Magyar Nemzet 25% 28% 47%

22%
MTV (public television) 23% 24% 53%
50%
Népszava 27% 33% 40%
31% Origo.hu 25% 27% 49%
22% OVERALL TRUST Regional or local newspaper 31% 31% 38%
0%
=48/48 markets RTL 47% 24% 29%
2016 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ telex.hu 43% 29% 28%
TV2 23% 22% 55%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
68
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 62.82 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

22%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 43% (-4) 70% 4 Facebook Messenger 9% (-2) 58%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 27% (+2) 67% 5 Instagram 6% (-) 31%
via social, messaging,
3 TikTok 11% (+2) 34% 6 X 3% (-) 9%
or email
90 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

IRELAND
The year 2024 was one of general consolidation in the Irish media
market, with new digital-first strategies, redundancy schemes in play,
and an impressive subscription performance from the Irish Times.

Population 5.1m
Internet penetration 97%

It proved a quieter year for the public desks can give more space to digital and licensed commercial radio services and
service broadcaster Raidió Teilifis Éireann less to print. It has also created a new extends its total weekly reach in the
(RTÉ) which was beset by controversy position of standards editor and has market to 2.24 million listeners.
from summer 2023 when a payments implemented a new programme
scandal was uncovered revealing secret facilitating journalists moving for a The regulator Coimisiún na Meán has
payments made by the former period to different departments to announced the awarding of €5.7m to news
management to boost the pay of a star enhance their skills outlets across Ireland under their new
presenter. After an enormously difficult Journalism Schemes. These schemes
period the government finally agreed to Irish Independent owner Mediahuis cover local democracy and courts
a long-awaited voluntary redundancy announced a voluntary redundancy reporting – the first time Coimisiún na
scheme in early 2025. The plan is to cut programme as part of a restructuring Meán has directly supported public-
400 jobs in five years. While a recruitment from the current model, where almost interest journalism for communities
freeze is in operation, a number of key 70% of its gross margin is directly related across Ireland on a platform-neutral
roles have been advertised in line with to print and only 30% is digital. Its 2030 basis. As part of the awards, over 100
RTÉ’s new director-general’s content plan is to reverse this so that 70% of the new or enhanced journalist roles will be
strategy to increase viewing on streaming group’s gross margin comes from digital created across the country. This includes
platforms, while keeping engagement on products and it becomes less dependent 71 newly funded roles for journalists, and
its linear channels. on print revenues. more than 30 roles where freelance or
part-time journalists will see enhanced
Virgin Media pulled back from current Audio in Ireland also continues to be employment terms. The initial pilot
affairs broadcasting, reducing its flagship popular through podcasts, with 12% of 12-month scheme has been awarded
current affairs programme, The Tonight DNR survey respondents using it as a further funding, with round two expected
Show, from four nights a week to two. It news source each week. Of podcast to open in July/August 2025.
also declined to host an election debate listeners, 47% say they are also willing
between party leaders in the November to pay for their favoured news podcasts. Jane Suiter
2024 general election. Instead, it pivoted Both the Irish Times and Mediahuis have Professor, Dublin City University
further to sport and, along with RTÉ, also been investing in podcasting, the
secured a deal to broadcast the rugby Six Irish Times’ Inside Politics is now three
Nations Championship until at least 2029, times a week and it is exploring further
ensuring all 15 matches remain free-to-air podcasts. The most-mentioned podcast
in Ireland. producers amongst our Irish respondents
include: the Irish Times, the BBC, the
The Irish Times group aims to evolve to a Independent, RTÉ, and the Guardian,
business model where more than 50% of with the Irish Independent’s Indo Daily
its revenues come from digital sources, up as the most cited podcast. However,
from the current share of about 25%. It the only Irish newsroom podcast to
has returned to profit on the back of feature in the Spotify overall top 10
increased third-party print contract charts, where 49% of Irish podcast
revenue and digital subscription and is listeners find podcasts, is Crime World
continuing to recruit. The group now has from tabloid the Sunday World.
about 143,000 paid subscriptions, after
the growth seen in 2023 continued into In the radio sector German media
2024. The Times is also completing a conglomerate Bauer Media Audio
newsroom reorganisation underpinning acquired several radio stations, including
its shift to digital. The night editor and youth-targeting regional station Beat
chief sub roles have been discontinued 102-103. The Hamburg-headquartered
and replaced with a pagination team so all company now owns eight of the 34
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis LineDigital
on bothNews
layers:Report 2025 | Ireland 91
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE RTÉ News (public broadcaster) 55
14 RTÉ News online 36
10
Sky News 11
27 TheJournal.ie 13
26
TOP BRANDS
BBC News 10
25 BreakingNews.ie 11
22
% Weekly usage
Virgin Media TV News 9
22 Irish Independent online 10
22
Weekly use Regional or local radio news 7
19 BBC News online 8
18
TV, radio & print Today FM 7
17 The Irish Times online 7
16
3 days per week or more The Irish Times 10
17 Sky News online 6
16
TV, radio & print
Irish Independent/Sunday Independent 9
16 Local radio news online 4
12
Weekly use
Newstalk 6
15 Guardian online 4
11
online brands
CNN 5
13 Irish Examiner online 5
10
3 days per week or more
online brands Regional or local newspaper 8
11 Regional or local newspaper online 5
10
Irish Sun 4
9 CNN.com 3
9

20%
ITV or Channel 4 TV News 5
9 Today FM online (todayfm.com) 5
9
Irish Daily Mirror 5
9 Virgin Media news online 4
8
pay for The Sunday Times/The Times 5
8 RTÉ TV News: 44% Irish Mirror online 4
8
ONLINE NEWS Irish Examiner 5
8 RTÉ Radio News: 29% Dublinlive.ie 3
7

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

CHANGING MEDIA Tisa Sans Pro Light
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Tisa Sans Pro Medium
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Tisa Sans Pro Light
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90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White
In a generally constant picture, reach for traditional news sources such as TV have been declining over time, while social media continue to
tread water.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2015–25 Social media
News podcasts 12% 2015–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 5%
100% 100%
83% 79%
76% 74% 77%

50% 58% 54%

52%
50% 49% 47% 50%
37%
22% 22%

0% 0%
2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust in news (51%) has increased this year by 5pp and is relatively high by
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
international standards. Public broadcaster RTÉ remains amongst the highest trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
trusted brands in our survey along with regional and local media. RTÉ, local and Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
regional radio and newspapers, the Irish Times, and BBC News all scored around BBC 70% 15% 14%
70% in terms of trust in news. Breakingnews 59% 25% 16%
Irish Daily Mail 45% 24% 30%
Irish Daily Mirror 44% 24% 32%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 Irish Examiner 65% 22% 13%
100% Irish Independent 68% 18% 13%
Newstalk 66% 20% 14%
Regional or local newspaper 71% 19% 10%

51%
51% Regional or local radio 72% 19% 10%
50% 46%
RTÉ News 72% 13% 15%
Sky News 66% 18% 16%
OVERALL TRUST The Irish Times 70% 17% 13%
0%
11/48 markets The Journal.ie 60% 24% 17%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Today FM 66% 22% 12%
Virgin Media News 65% 20% 15%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
7
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 86.92 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

29%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 29% (-) 59% 4 Instagram 16% (-1) 44%
SHARE NEWS 2 WhatsApp 23% (+1) 70% 5 X 14% (+1) 23%
via social, messaging,
3 YouTube 18% (-5) 51% 6 TikTok 12% (+2) 26%
or email
92 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

ITALY
The Italian media market is experiencing profound transformation,
shaped by the rapid rise of digital platforms and the continuing but
changing role of television. International tech companies like Google,
Meta, and Netflix dominate online revenues, presenting challenges
for domestic traditional media players. While TV news consumption
remains relatively stable, print media face ongoing decline – and Population 59m
willingness to pay for online news remains a challenge. Internet penetration 87%

Television still dominates the legacy Pavese, continuing a series of divestments engaging their audiences. However, our
media landscape in Italy, generating that have left them with only one local survey shows that only 9% of Italian
nearly 72% of the traditional media sector publication. GEDI has also appointed a respondents pay for online news.
revenues, in contrast to the ongoing new editor-in-chief at La Repubblica,
decline of print media and modest growth yet another leadership change in a short In late 2024, Italy’s data protection
in radio. Historically marked by high period. This latest move suggests an authority issued a warning to GEDI over its
ownership concentration between the effort to reconnect the paper with its planned partnership with OpenAI, raising
public broadcaster RAI and the Berlusconi original editorial identity, following concerns about potential breaches of EU
family-owned Mediaset, Italy’s television earlier attempts to moderate its privacy rules. Under the agreement,
sector has recently become slightly less traditional left-leaning orientation, ChatGPT users would gain access to
concentrated. RAI remains the leading which met with mixed reactions from attributed quotes, content, and links to
player, followed by the pay-TV operator both readers and staff. GEDI’s publications, while the publisher’s
Sky and Mediaset, with these three journalism could be used to improve the
operators together still holding Online news reach looks very different. accuracy of OpenAI products. However,
approximately 70% of total TV revenues. While broadcasters like Mediaset, Sky, the regulator cautioned against the
Streaming platforms such as Netflix, and RAI remain popular, they are possible misuse of sensitive personal data
DAZN, TIM, Amazon, and Disney have challenged online by the websites of contained in archival material.69
significantly strengthened, capturing leading newspapers such as La Repubblica,
In March 2025, Il Foglio published what it
close to 20% of the total.67 Corriere della Sera, and Il Fatto Quotidiano,
described as the world’s first AI-generated
as well as by the national news agency
Online advertising continues its upward newspaper edition, with headlines,
ANSA. The digital-born outlet Fanpage,
trajectory in Italy, now accounting for 61% articles, editorials, and even reader letters
launched in 2010, has consolidated its
of total advertising revenues. However, entirely produced by artificial intelligence.
position as the leading online player.
this segment is highly concentrated, with Presented as a time-limited, deliberately
Other digital-native brands, including Il
major international platforms capturing provocative experiment aimed at
Post and Will Media, reach smaller
85% of digital ad revenues, leaving stimulating debate on the evolving role of
audiences overall but perform
traditional publishers struggling to remain AI and digital tools in journalism, the
comparatively well among younger users
competitive, enjoying just 15%.68 initiative emphasised exploration and
(reaching respectively 11% and 9% of
strategic promotion rather than signalling
TV’s continued importance is reflected in under-35s).
a fundamental shift away from
our offline weekly reach ranking, which is conventional reporting.
The shift towards membership models
dominated by the main broadcasters.
continues to gain traction among Italian Alessio Cornia
Among print outlets, only Il Corriere della
digital-born news outlets. Fanpage has Dublin City University, Ireland
Sera and La Repubblica are used weekly by
recently launched a membership
at least 10% of respondents. These are the
initiative. Unlike traditional paywalls,
flagship newspapers of Cairo/RCS and
all core content will remain free – a choice
GEDI, the two main publishing groups,
designed to keep the site’s high traffic
which jointly account for over a third
volumes and advertising revenues – while
(34%) of the total copies sold in 2024.
subscribers gain access to extra features
Recent developments in the press sector such as exclusive podcasts, newsletters,
highlight the ongoing challenges facing and an ad-free experience. The move
traditional print media. After 25 years, reflects a broader trend among Italian
the Italian edition of the free newspaper digital-native outlets – including Il Post,
Metro ceased publication at the end of Open, HuffPost, Linkiesta, and Citynews
2024, both in print and online. GEDI is – to diversify revenues beyond declining
selling the local newspaper Provincia advertising streams by more actively

67
https://www.agcom.it/pubblicazioni/relazioni-annuali
68
https://www.agcom.it/pubblicazioni/relazioni-annuali
69
https://www.reuters.com/technology/italian-watchdog-warns-publisher-gedi-against-sharing-data-with-openai-2024-11-29/
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis Line onDigital News Report 2025 | Italy
both layers: 93
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE Mediaset TV News (Tg4, Tg5, Studio Aperto) 38
10 Fanpage 22
13
RAI TV News (Tg1, Tg2, Tg3, TgR) 10
37 ANSA online 8
17
TOP BRANDS
TgCom24 (Mediaset) 12
21 TgCom24 online (Mediaset) 7
17
% Weekly usage
SkyTg24 9
19 SkyTg24 online 6
14
Weekly use RAI News24 11
19 La Repubblica online 6
12
TV, radio & print Tg La7 6
13 RAI News online 7
12
3 days per week or more Commercial radio news 6
12 Il Corriere della Sera online 5
10
TV, radio & print
Regional or local newspaper 7
11 Commercial radio news online 4
8
Weekly use
Il Corriere della Sera 7
10 Il Fatto Quotidiano online 5
8
online brands
Dritto e Rovescio 7
10 Notizie Libero online 6
8
3 days per week or more
online brands La Repubblica 6
10 Regional or local newspaper online 3
7
Fuori dal Coro 6
9 Il Sole 24 Ore online 4
7

9%
RAI radio news (Gr1, Gr2, Gr3) 5
9 IlPost.it 4
6
Porta a Porta 5
7 3
TgLa7 online 6
pay for Piazzapulita 6
7 Quotidiano.net (La Nazione online etc.) 3 5
ONLINE NEWS Il Fatto Quotidiano 4
6 HuffPost 4 5

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

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TV news use has stabilised after years of decline, while print continues to shrink. Online news shows a modest drop compared to
previous years.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2013–25 Social media
News podcasts 6% 2013–25* 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 4%
100% 100%

80% 81%
74%
68%
59% 65%
58% 56%
50% 50%
39%
27% 25% 29%
12% 14%
0% 0%
2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots * 2018 figures for computer use were likely overstated due to an error in polling

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust in news remains relatively low at 36%. Outlets perceived as more neutral in
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
their political stance tend to be more trusted. Fanpage and Il Post score lower, likely trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
because they are trusted mostly by younger audiences, while older users tend to Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
place less trust in them. ANSA 74% 17% 9%
Fanpage 43% 29% 29%
Il Corriere della Sera 60% 25% 15%
Il Fatto Quotidiano 52% 28% 20%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 Il Giornale 46% 30% 24%
100% Il Sole 24 Ore 67% 22% 11%
IlPost.it 44% 37% 19%
La Repubblica 55% 26% 19%

36%
La Stampa 54% 29% 17%
50%
36% Libero Quotidiano 44% 28% 28%
35%
Mediaset News 57% 23% 21%
OVERALL TRUST RAI 58% 20% 22%
0%
=27/48 markets
Regional or local newspaper 60% 27% 13%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ SkyTG24 67% 21% 12%
Tg La7 61% 24% 16%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
49
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 68.01 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

26%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 36% (-1) 65% 4 YouTube 20% (-) 58%
SHARE NEWS 2 Instagram 22% (+2) 54% 5 TikTok 10% (+1) 25%
via social, messaging,
3 WhatsApp 21% (-4) 81% 6 Telegram 6% (-2) 26%
or email
94 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

NETHERLANDS
The Dutch media landscape is characterised by strong media
concentration, with two publishers and a public broadcaster
dominating the news market. Commercial and public news media
continue to focus on the digital transition, and have launched several
initiatives to reach young audiences in particular.
Population 17.7m
Internet penetration 97%

The Dutch media landscape continues to experimental space for developing cestmocro regularly posts news about the
be marked by high media concentration. strategies to engage Gen Z, and to develop Israel-Hamas war from the Palestinian
Belgian publishers DPG Media and a sustainable business model around that. perspective, arguing they ‘choose the
Mediahuis own more than 90% of all Having successfully built young audiences perspective of the repressed and not the
Dutch newspapers, and the former also on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, public oppressor’. The party leader of BBB (The
owns the biggest news website NU.nl. broadcaster NOS continues to experiment Farmer–Citizen Movement) suggested
Public service broadcaster NOS with new online spaces. Their youth- banning the account, claiming it ‘is
dominates the TV and radio market for oriented brand NOS op 3 previously tried overflowing with antisemitism’ and has ‘a
news, in addition to being the second out livestreaming on Twitch, and last year huge influence on young people’. However,
biggest player online. their child-oriented (ages 9–12) brand legal experts argued this would amount to
Jeugdjournaal published its own game censorship, and that illegality should be
Citing concerns about the pluralism of the on Roblox, a free online gaming platform judged per post or per comment.71 It is
Dutch news landscape and working popular with children and teens. The worth keeping in mind though that
conditions for journalists, the Netherlands game features a virtual remake of the research shows that just 3% of Dutch
Competition Authority (ACM) has Jeugdjournaal studio, where children can young people that follow cestmocro – or
postponed its decision on DPG Media’s play at being reporters and participate in similar Instagram accounts RapnieuwsTV
plans to acquire TV and entertainment news quizzes. and ParraTV – consume no other Dutch
company RTL Nederland, which is the (traditional) news brand (Schut et al. 2024).
second biggest news brand in terms of The generative AI upsurge has prompted
offline reach. The Dutch Media Authority Dutch newsrooms to increasingly Aspirant public service broadcaster
also warned that media consumers’ move experiment with AI systems, ranging from Ongehoord Nederland (ON) (Unheard
to social media and (international) trial runs with AI news anchors (regional Netherlands) continues to be in the news.
streaming services risks displacing broadcasters RTV Drenthe, Omroep Oost, After complaints about disinformation
consumption of Dutch quality news. They Omroep Brabant) to the development of and racism, sanctions, and – ultimately
called on legislators and media companies in-house AI tools to optimise editorial denied – requests to revoke their licence,
to ensure reliable Dutch journalism is processes (e.g. publisher DPG Media’s their former chairman was fired after
prominently visible and easily findable.70 ChatDPG). complaints about an unsafe work
environment, restriction of freedom of
Newspaper companies continue to focus Several Dutch news media migrated from speech, and misogynistic remarks. Unsafe
on their digital freemium strategy, X to Bluesky, following Elon Musk’s work cultures have also been found at the
keeping their premium content behind takeover, amid fears for a subsequent NPO (the umbrella administrative body
paywalls to attract subscribers. Mediahuis increase in hate speech and mis- and for Dutch public broadcasting service) and
reported stable subscriptions over 2024, disinformation. Public broadcaster NOS public broadcasters NTR and WNL.72
with the growth of digital subscribers stayed on X ‘to safeguard the diversity of
offsetting the loss of print subscribers. In their platforms’, and commercial player Tim Groot Kormelink and Kenza Lamot
line with their digital focus, NRC offered RTL Nieuws stayed but turned off Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam
its subscribers one year of free digital comments. In January 2025, newspaper
access to all New York Times content. De Volkskrant also ceased posting on
Due to decreasing demands for print, Facebook, citing Meta’s decision to get rid
Mediahuis announced plans to close its of fact-checkers in the United States and
printing press in Dutch capital reduce hate content moderation.
Amsterdam, following a closure last year
in Aachen (Germany). Popular Instagram channel cestmocro
(1.1 million followers) was at the centre
News brands are actively seeking to reach of discussions about freedom of speech.
younger audiences. In 2024, Mediahuis Repurposing content from legacy news
launched a new initiative C.Tru, an media including NOS, BBC, and Al Jazeera,

70
https://www.cvdm.nl/nieuws/mediamonitor-2024-verschuiving-in-mediagebruik-naar-internationale-platformen-vormt-risico-voor-geinformeerdheid-van-burgers/
71
https://nos.nl/artikel/2544534-verbieden-van-instagramaccount-cestmocro-is-enorm-vergaande-maatregel
72
https://nltimes.nl/2024/02/01/three-quarters-workers-dutch-public-broadcaster-experienced-inappropriate-behavior
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE NOS Nieuws (public broadcaster) 54
13 NU.nl 39
12
RTL Nieuws (incl. RTL Z and EditieNL) 10
28 NOS Nieuws online 10
31
TOP BRANDS
SBS Nieuws (Hart van Nederland) 8
22 Algemeen Dagblad (AD) online 7
22
% Weekly usage
Regional or local newspaper 10
18 RTL Nieuws online 7
17
Weekly use Free local papers 11
15 De Telegraaf online 5
16
TV, radio & print Other NPO TV news programmes 7
15 Regional or local TV news online 5
10
3 days per week or more Commercial radio news 5
15 Other regional or local newspaper online 5
10
TV, radio & print
Algemeen Dagblad (AD) and regional editions 5
13 SBS Nieuws (Hart van Nederland) online 2
7
Weekly use
De Telegraaf 5
12 de Volkskrant online 3
7
online brands
Regional TV news 5
10 NRC online 5
3 days per week or more
online brands Regional radio news 3
8 Indebuurt.nl 5
3
de Volkskrant 6 Other online sites from outside the Netherlands 5

17%
3
CNN 6 Metro News online 4
BNR Nieuwsradio 2 5 CNN online 4
pay for BBC News 2 5 BBC News online 4
ONLINE NEWS NRC 4 MSN News 4

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TV and print have steadily declined as news sources over the past decade. Online and social media are flat at best, with Facebook use
for news declining for the second year in a row.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2015–25 Social media
News podcasts 7% 2015–25* 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 5%
100% 100%

80%
76% 75% 73%
64%
58%
57%
50% 43% 50%
42% 42%
35% 32%
24% 25%

0% 0%
2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots * 2018 figures for computer use were likely overstated due to an error in polling

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust in Dutch news has remained fairly stable over the past ten years. After a peak
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
during the early COVID-19 era (2021), trust numbers have slowly returned to trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
mid-2010 levels. Trust in individual news brands remains high but is slightly down Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
across the board in the last year. Public broadcaster NOS and local media are Algemeen Dagblad (AD) 68% 21% 11%
amongst the most trusted of the surveyed brands. ANP 72% 19% 10%
BNR Nieuwsradio 60% 28% 12%
De Telegraaf 54% 24% 23%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 De Volkskrant 65% 22% 13%
100% GeenStijl 31% 30% 39%
Hart van Nederland (SBS News) 60% 21% 20%
Het Financieele Dagblad 66% 24% 10%

50%
51% Metro 51% 32% 17%
50% 50%
NOS News 77% 13% 10%
NRC 65% 23% 12%
OVERALL TRUST NU (Nu.nl) 69% 21% 10%
0%
12/48 markets Regional or local newspaper 73% 18% 9%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ RTL News 71% 18% 11%
Trouw 62% 25% 13%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
3
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 88.64 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

19%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 19% (-3) 52% 4 Instagram 12% (-1) 40%
SHARE NEWS 2 WhatsApp 16% (-3) 74% 5 TikTok 7% (+1) 18%
via social, messaging,
3 YouTube 13% (-3) 48% 6 X 6% (-1) 12%
or email
96 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

NORWAY
The Norwegian media landscape combines strong national legacy
brands with public service media, which have managed the transition
from print to the web well. However, cost-cutting has continued this
year due to changes in the media structure. Trust as well as willingness
to pay remain high.
Population 5.5m
Internet penetration 99%

The year saw continued cuts in the media are popular. Schibsted’s bundle gives investigative journalism site Filter
industry. The reasons are a mix of rapid access to all the company’s subscription Nyheter, receive their first subsidies in
falls in print combined with the need to newspapers, including Aftenposten and 2023. The reformed subsidy scheme aims
transition to new technology, volatile regional brands, as well as a catalogue to support diversity in news in general and
advertising income, increased of magazines. Amedia’s alternative local newspapers, and this year the €35m
competition from foreign news, podcasts, covers over 100 local newspapers and was divided between 162 news providers.
and entertainment, restructuring, and podcast content.
effects of a changed press subsidy AI has been high on the agenda in the
scheme. In 2023, media conglomerate The Norwegian podcast market has seen Norwegian news industry, both as a tool
Schibsted separated their editorial news continued consolidation this year with and a threat. Almost half of the journalists
businesses into the trust Schibsted Media NRK and newspapers VG and Aftenposten, asked in a recent survey 73 worried that AI
and put their profitable digital ads both owned by Schibsted, as the leading would increase unemployment. Editors
services into Schibsted Marketplace. local players. Norwegians’ most-used were more optimistic about AI in offering
Commentators’ concerns for Schibsted platforms are the NRK Radio app (63%), useful tools – although two out of three
Media’s revenue were confirmed when the Spotify (45%), and YouTube (23%). One journalists also saw AI as a good aid in the
trust announced 350 redundancies in trend is that major providers try to direct newsroom. Several major providers,
2025. The national public service users to their own platforms, rather than including Schibsted brands and NRK,
broadcaster NRK has also been cutting third-party ones like Spotify or Apple. have introduced AI-made summaries of
spending (by €17m), resulting in 84 NRK and Schibsted now only occasionally news articles. During the US election,
redundancies with more to come. release new episodes on these platforms, commercial broadcaster TV2 ran an
Meanwhile, also in late 2024, the second perhaps to keep their ranking and tempt experiment creating an AI avatar which
largest Norwegian news conglomerate listeners to switch to their platforms. answered readers’ questions about the
Amedia acquired Danish Berlingske Schibsted relies heavily on its own election. ‘KI-Kjetil’ received over 10,000
Media, publisher of major broadsheets as subscription-based PodMe platform, with questions,74 of which the avatar answered
41% of Norwegians saying they are willing 0.04% incorrectly. TV2 published an
well as tabloid B.T., thereby strengthening
to pay for a news-related podcast. online log of its mistakes with a detailed
their position in the Nordic region.
account of how and why they created the
While digital subscriptions still do not The news agenda has been dominated by avatar.
replace declines in other income, of the 48 war coverage – both from Ukraine and the
Middle East – and geopolitical turmoil has Janne Biedilæ Bjørgan and Hallvard Moe
markets surveyed this year, Norwegian
also pivoted journalism to focus heavily on University of Bergen
news users are again the most willing to
pay for news, with 42% having accessed defence and foreign policy. But this does
paid news. Norwegians are avid readers of not seem to have weakened trust in news
news and this, coupled with an innovative which remains high and stable at 54%
media industry, a long-standing press overall and Norwegians’ preferred news
subsidy scheme, and the absence of sources are still online news and TV, both
freesheets, helps explain the relative far ahead of social media.
success of online news payment. Ongoing Debate about the media policy changes
subscriptions and memberships are the introduced in 2023 continued throughout
most common forms of payment and, as 2024. Commercial broadcaster TV2,
seen in earlier years, the Norwegian which implemented major cuts in 2023,
subscription market is divided between lobbied to abolish the newly introduced
major national brands (Aftenposten and VAT on video news (other news outlets are
VG) and regional and local news. Two exempt from VAT). Changes in the general
bundled subscription offerings from subsidy scheme saw so-called alternative
Schibsted (Full tilgang) and Amedia (+Alt) news site Document.no, as well as

73
https://www.journalisten.no/nye-tall-norske-journalister-frykter-ki-kan-bety-mer-arbeidsledighet/610188
74
https://hjelp.tv2.no/info/artikkel/derfor-har-vi-laget-ki-kjetil?draft=MyQL3qjkCeATZ9E5UW7vKgDW
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis LineDigital
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE NRK (TV and radio) (public broadcaster) 56
14 VG Nett 10
61
TV2 News 13
43 NRK News online 13
51
TOP BRANDS
VG (Verdens Gang) 7
23 TV2 News online 13
38
% Weekly usage
Regional or local newspaper 8
16 Dagbladet online 10
34
Weekly use P4 News (radio) 6
14 Nettavisen.no 11
27
TV, radio & print Dagbladet 4
10 Regional or local newspaper online 7
27
3 days per week or more Aftenposten 4
9 E24 13
25
TV, radio & print
Radio Norge 5
9 Aftenposten online 7
17
Weekly use
BBC News 4
7 ABC News online 5
10
online brands
Local radio news 5 Bergens Tidende online 3
9
3 days per week or more
online brands CNN 5 Dagens Næringsliv (DN) online 4
8
Dagens Næringsliv (DN) 5 3
BBC News online 6

42%
Bergens Tidende 5 Dagsavisen online 2 5
Local TV News 5 Stavanger Aftenblad online 2 5
pay for Other news media from outside Norway 4 Adresseavisen online 2 5
ONLINE NEWS Dagsavisen 3 Document.no 3 5

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TV and print continue a slow but seemingly steady decline as sources for news, while social media are also on a downward path.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2016–25 Social media
News podcasts 11% 2016–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 4%
100% 100%
86% 87%
83%
72% 66%
64% 66%
54% 55%
50% 50%
41% 41%
36% 34%
17%

0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Overall trust in news has stabilised at a level higher than pre-COVID. By brand,
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
levels and rankings remain stable. NRK holds its top position as the most trusted trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
news provider, with local and regional newspapers as runners-up. Overall changes Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
are rather minor, but the trend is for tabloid brands to see a decline. ABC News 41% 36% 23%
Aftenposten 71% 18% 11%
Bergens Tidende 61% 29% 10%
Dagbladet 51% 21% 28%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2016–25 Dagens Næringsliv 70% 21% 9%
100% E24 64% 24% 12%
Klassekampen 49% 32% 20%
Local radio news 66% 23% 11%

54%
54% Nettavisen 56% 24% 20%
50% 46%
NRK News 81% 10% 9%
P4 58% 28% 14%
OVERALL TRUST Radio Norge 56% 30% 14%
0%
=7/48 markets
Regional or local newspaper 77% 15% 8%
2016 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ TV2 News 75% 14% 11%
VG 66% 17% 17%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
1
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 92.31 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

16%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 24% (-1) 71% 4 Instagram 10% (-) 50%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 13% (-) 49% 5 TikTok 10% (+3) 23%
via social, messaging,
3 Snapchat 12% (+1) 58% 6 Facebook Messenger 7% (-1) 53%
or email
98 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

POLAND
The new government led by Donald Tusk saw its first anniversary
after eight years of right-wing rule. It has tried to strike a new tone in
its relations with Europe and the media but the landscape has been
anything but stable. The country’s biggest broadcasters have faced
takeover bids, public media remained entangled in political conflict,
and digital challengers – from crowdfunded newsrooms to creator-led Population 40m
platforms – scramble for audiences in a fragmented market. Internet penetration 86%

Poland’s two largest private leadership and withheld public funds. news site, backed by Rafał Brzoska,
broadcasters, TVN and Polsat, came Since February 2024, KRRiT has lodged a Polish billionaire and the founder and
under heavy scrutiny, both from potential funds with the court rather than CEO of InPost, a major European logistics
buyers and the state. Warner Bros disbursing them directly to TVP or Polskie company, publicly traded on Euronext.
Discovery began the sale of TVN, working Radio. The impasse eased in September, The website went live in October with a
with JPMorgan to find buyers for the €1bn when KRRiT agreed to release a portion freemium model and introduced a
asset, though it later decided to keep its of public funds following devastating paywall in January 2025. Targeting
ownership. Early contenders included floods in southern Poland. underreported economic and policy
Italy’s MediaForEurope (MFE), Polish topics, XYZ is part of a broader wave of
billionaire businessman and former Meanwhile, Poland’s traditional TV
journalist-led outlets offering more
championship racing driver Michał market continued to fragment. Only six
focused, independent coverage.
Sołowow, and WP Holding, owner of the shows exceeded 3 million viewers in 2024
Wirtualna Polska portal.75 – down from 49 the year before. Average However, one of the boldest – and most
viewing time held steady, but audiences controversial – innovations came from
In a move widely seen as an effort to were increasingly scattered across public radio. Radio Krakow replaced all
secure national media independence formats and platforms. human hosts at youth-oriented OFF Radio
ahead of the 2025 presidential election, with AI-generated presenters.77 In one
the government added TVN and Polsat to Smaller, more agile players thrived amid awkward moment, a chatbot conducted
its list of ‘strategic enterprises’, granting the disruption. One major beneficiary was an interview with deceased Nobel
itself a veto over acquisitions by non-EEA TV Republika. The once-niche laureate Wisława Szymborska.
or non-OECD buyers. While not an conservative channel surged in ratings Management cited cost savings and
outright block, the decision reflected and revenue, picking up some of TVP Info’s format testing, but critics condemned
growing concerns over foreign influence right-wing audiences unhappy at the the move as a threat to public service
and media ownership concentration in a changes at the PSB news channel and who journalism. The decision sparked protests
polarised political environment. were looking for alternatives sympathetic and drew attention to the EU’s
to the former ruling party. TV Republika’s forthcoming AI Act, which mandates
Polsat’s turbulence was homegrown. revenues rose 21% year-on-year to transparency and ethical guidelines in
A succession dispute within the Solorz €5.37m, with net profit soaring to AI-generated content.
family – founders of the Cyfrowy Polsat €790,000 from just €7,700 in 2023.
empire – spilled into public view. Leaked While AI raised questions about
letters and court filings prompted Another successful online start-up was journalism’s future, many traditional
concerns over leadership, investor Kanał Zero, a YouTube-based news and outlets grappled with more immediate
confidence, and the long-term direction commentary platform launched in challenges. Newspapers and magazines
of one of Poland’s most influential media February by journalist and entrepreneur continued to face declining circulation
empires. Eventually, the founder Krzysztof Stanowski. By the year’s end, and advertising revenue, leading to job
Zygmunt Solorz removed his children as it had over 1.4 million subscribers, 2,700 cuts and labour unrest. Agora, publisher
heirs and appointed a charitable videos, and 450 million views. Its revenue of Gazeta Wyborcza, laid off 180
foundation as his successor.76 reached €6.08m, with EBITDA of €1.3m. employees, 14% of the workforce.
Relying on sponsorship, its success
Public broadcaster TVP also faced demonstrated growing demand for Vadim Makarenko
uncertainty. A year into rebuilding efforts creator-led, personality-driven news. Director of Research Digital, Statista GmbH;
following a post-election overhaul, its Late in 2024, Stanowski announced a former journalist, Gazeta Wyborcza, and
operations were complicated by a presidential bid, prompting at least one former Reuters Institute Journalist Fellow
standoff over board appointments. The key contributor to leave.
National Broadcasting Council (KRRiT),
aligned with the former ruling party, Kanał Zero wasn’t alone in pursuing
refused to recognise changes in TVP’s alternative formats. A major digital
launch came from XYZ.pl, a business

75
https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/warner-bros-discovery-gets-least-two-bids-polish-broadcaster-tvn-2025-01-29/
76
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-10-07/billionaire-solorz-ousts-sons-from-polish-utility-s-board
77
https://www.euronews.com/next/2024/10/24/radio-station-in-poland-fired-its-journalists-and-replaced-them-with-ai-presenters
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis LineDigital
on bothNews
layers:Report 2025 | Poland 99
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE TVN News (incl. TVN 24) 36
8 Onet.pl 35
13
RMF FM 9
32 WP.pl 10
28
TOP BRANDS
Polsat News 8
29 TVN24.pl 8
22
% Weekly usage
TVP News (public television) 8
26 Interia.pl 8
20
Weekly use Radio Zet 8
22 RMF24.pl 7
16
TV, radio & print TV Republika 3
14 Fakt.pl 7
13
3 days per week or more Eska 6
13 TVP.info 6
12
TV, radio & print
Fakt 8
12 Kanal Zero (YouTube) 4
11
Weekly use
Gazeta Wyborcza 7
11 Gazeta.pl 6
11
online brands
Regional or local radio 4
10 (Gazeta) Wyborcza.pl 6
11
3 days per week or more
online brands TTV 4
10 Polsatnews.pl 4
10
Regional or local newspaper 7
10 Radiozet.pl 5
10

13%
Super Express 58 Regional or local newspaper online 5
8
Polskie Radio (public radio) 37 NaszeMiasto.pl 4
7
pay for VOX FM 36 Newsweek.pl 4
6
ONLINE NEWS Rzeczpospolita 25 Polityka.pl 4
6

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

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Online as a news source grew somewhat in the last year, possibly driven by an increase in social media for news (+6pp). TV remains
strong but along with print is in long-term decline.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2015–25 Social media
News podcasts 9% 2015–25* 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 7%
100% 100%
84%
81% 77% 81% 81%
69%
54%
50% 52% 54% 50% 52%

28%
18% 22%
10%
0% 0%
2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots * 2018 figures for computer use were likely overstated due to an error in polling

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust in news in Poland rose significantly with almost half (47%) of respondents
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
saying they trust news overall – up 8pp from the previous year. However, many trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
established news outlets recorded declines. Public television (TVP) was one of the
Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
few exceptions, managing to partly rebuild its trust score (+4), probably as a result Fakt 30% 30% 41%
of government moves to de-politicise it. Gazeta Polska 32% 34% 34%
Gazeta Wyborcza 34% 30% 36%
Interia 39% 38% 23%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 Newsweek Polska 38% 35% 27%
100% OKO.press 29% 39% 32%
Onet.pl 41% 31% 28%
Polsat News 48% 31% 21%

47%
47% Radio Zet 48% 34% 18%
50% 56%
Regional or local newspaper 47% 35% 18%
RMF FM 52% 32% 17%
OVERALL TRUST Super Express 28% 34% 38%
0%
13/48 markets TVN News 40% 29% 31%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ TVP News (public broadcaster) 33% 33% 35%
WP.pl 42% 34% 24%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
31
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 74.79 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

23%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 40% (-2) 74% 4 X 13% (+6) 19%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 32% (+1) 68% 5 Instagram 12% (-) 37%
via social, messaging,
3 Facebook Messenger 13% (-2) 55% 6 TikTok 11% (+1) 29%
or email
100 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

PORTUGAL
After another year of political uncertainty led by a minority
government, the Portuguese were called to the polls once again
in May 2025. In advance of that the ongoing political uncertainty
continued to impact the media landscape, which remains beset
by financial difficulties, job insecurity for journalists, and a lack of
structural reform. Population 10.2m
Internet penetration 86%

In October 2024, the now outgoing Amidst the challenges, there were signs of feel that journalists and news brands may
government presented a policy package of resilience. Medialivre (owner of Correio da contribute to misinformation. In response,
30 measures aimed at supporting the Manhã, formerly known as Cofina group) the government is implementing
media sector. It addressed issues such as and Media Capital Group (owner of TVI initiatives like free digital news
economic sustainability and employment private TV broadcaster), both announced subscriptions for 15–18-year-olds as part
conditions, while also seeking to engage positive results in 2023. After a successful of broader media literacy efforts, aiming
major digital platforms in efforts to ensure management buy-out, Cofina was sold to to foster the habit of news consumption
a more sustainable media ecosystem. Medialivre, an entity built and owned by and, at the same time, a culture of paying
Cofina executives and with soccer player for digital news, which may in turn help
Plans included reforming the current
Cristiano Ronaldo as one of the investors. the ailing media sector.
outdated Press and Radio Laws into a new
Media Capital sold its radio broadcasting
Media Code, along with the reform of RTP, Following the rising popularity of podcasts
business to Bauer Media Audio Portugal
the public service broadcaster, with a new among Portuguese audiences, in early 2025
– the sale included national stations such
contract. Also at stake were incentives to market research firm Marktest launched
as market leader Comercial, M80, and
hire journalists and training in digital the country’s first audited podcast ranking.
CidadeFM. On the public side, RTP also
technology and AI, and the restructuring The initiative is supported by the four major
managed to deliver a profit for the 14th
of Lusa – the national news agency partly podcast publishers – Impresa, Grupo
successive year in 2024.
owned by the state. One of the more Renascença Multimedia, Observador, and
contentious proposals – the gradual In the TV sector, Medialivre launched a Bauer Media Audio Portugal. Data gathered
removal of advertising from RTP – which cable news TV channel (Now) aiming to for the first month alone shows that
currently accounts for over 20% of their challenge the dominance of the three Portuguese listeners downloaded a total
net commercial revenue – sparked 24-hour news channels owned by Impresa, 12.8 million podcast episodes and Marktest
political debate and was ultimately Media Capital Group, and RTP. Of those is aiming to include other publishers in the
rejected during the 2025 national budget who say TV is their main source for news, ranking, arguing that these impressive
vote. In March 2025, RTP’s contract was 40% point to 24-hour news channels as totals provide a compelling argument to
renewed until 2031. the main source, so one can understand attract advertisers.
why the new entrant sees grounds for
Economic pressures on media businesses
optimism. In August, Media Capital Group Ana Pinto-Martinho, Miguel Paisana, and
remain acute. Two of the country’s major
also launched a new general channel (V+ Gustavo Cardoso
private media groups, Impresa and Global Observatório da Comunicação and ISCTE,
TVI), in a rebranding strategy for their
Media, have recently reported major University Institute of Lisbon
existing channel TVI Ficção.
losses. Global Media (owner of Diário de
Notícias and Jornal de Notícias, both As far as small, independent news brands
historic newspapers, as well as TSF radio) are concerned, brands like Shifter,
implemented wage cuts, failed to pay Fumaça, and Divergente continue to
salaries on time, and carried out layoffs, operate and offer niche, investigative
raising fears about the financial journalism that diverges from the mass
sustainability of even the most offering, but they have to fight to attract
established brands. subscribers and ensure their survival.

March 2024 marked a historical milestone Young people’s relationship with news is
when more than 40 Portuguese media complex and shaped by their reliance on
organisations joined a general strike social media platforms like Instagram,
organised by the Portuguese Journalists YouTube, and TikTok, which weakens their
Union (SINJOR), to protest against low connection to traditional media. They
salaries, precarious contracts, and generally display lower trust in news, less
worsening working conditions. concern about online disinformation, and
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Portugal
layers: 101
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE SIC (incl. SIC Notícias) 55
17 SIC online (incl. SIC Notícias online) 27
9
CNN Portugal (formerly TVI24) 14
35 Notícias ao Minuto 11
25
TOP BRANDS
RTP (public broadcaster) 12
34 Correio da Manhã TV online 9
19
% Weekly usage
TVI News 11
32 Correio da Manhã online 9
18
Weekly use Correio da Manhã (newspaper) 12
22 Jornal de Notícias online 10
18
TV, radio & print RFM 10
22 CNN Portugal online 7
18
3 days per week or more Correio da Manhã TV 8
21 Observador 9
17
TV, radio & print
Jornal de Notícias 12
20 Sapo 7
16
Weekly use
Rádio Comercial 8
20 TVI News online 5
15
online brands
M80 5
11 Expresso online 7
14
3 days per week or more
online brands Regional or local newspaper 8
11 RTP News online 7
14
Expresso 7
11 Público online 7
13

10%
Diário de Notícias 7
10 Diário de Notícias online 6
11
Público 5
9 RFM online 4
11

pay for Rádio Renascença 5

8 A Bola (abola.pt) 4
10
ONLINE NEWS TSF 4
8 Rádio Comercial online 4
10

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Although it has declined over the last decade, TV remains an important source of news for many Portuguese. Usage of online and social
media for news has declined somewhat since 2022.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2015–25 Social media
News podcasts 6% 2015–25* 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 4%
100% 100%
86%
85% 78% 80%
69%
67% 66%
61%
50% 47% 44% 50%
34% 35%

17% 21%

0% 0%
2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots * 2018 figures for computer use were likely overstated due to an error in polling

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust figures reached their lowest point in the last decade with 54% claiming to
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
trust news, a considerable decline compared to the 66% recorded in 2015, the first trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
year Portugal became part of the Digital News Report. As in previous years, most Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
brand trust scores are considerably higher, with public broadcaster RTP among the Agência Lusa 69% 20% 11%
most trusted brands. Correio da Manhã 52% 21% 27%
Expresso 73% 18% 9%
Jornal de Notícias 74% 17% 9%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 Notícias ao Minuto 64% 24% 12%
100% Observador 65% 23% 12%
Público 71% 20% 9%

66% Rádio Comercial 72% 20% 8%

54%
54% Rádio Renascença 71% 20% 9%
50%
RDP Antena 1 68% 23% 10%
Regional or local newspaper 63% 26% 11%
OVERALL TRUST RTP News 75% 17% 9%
0%
=7/48 markets
SIC News 73% 17% 10%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ TSF 69% 21% 10%
TVI News 66% 19% 15%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
8
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 84.26 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

31%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 34% (-1) 63% 4 YouTube 17% (-4) 57%
SHARE NEWS 2 WhatsApp 21% (-2) 67% 5 TikTok 9% (+2) 25%
via social, messaging,
3 Instagram 21% (-) 51% 6 Facebook Messenger 7% (-4) 33%
or email
102 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

ROMANIA
A sophisticated disinformation campaign that prevented a free vote,
uncontrolled pre-electoral public spending, and external interference
led to a far-right, pro-Russian, ‘TikTok candidate’ for the Presidency
securing a first-round victory in November 2024. The Constitutional
Court cancelled the results and postponed presidential elections
which were eventually won in May 2025 by a pro-western candidate Population 19.6m
Nicușor Dan. Internet penetration 89%

2024 could have been a great year for the social media channels, and accounts,79 most likely to be exposed to the new
Romanian media market whose revenues from a paramilitary group, from a brand of influencers – some supporting
exceeded the €1bn mark. With the Romanian entrepreneur who paid €1m to Georgescu and others opposed to him and
combination of the UEFA Euros and the TikTok influencers, and from Romanian adopting pro-EU positions.
Summer Olympic Games and elections at far-right parties. Ahead of the election it
all four levels (with local, parliamentary, became clear that Mr Georgescu was With a mixture of investigative journalism,
European, and presidential elections), breaking the law by posting unlabelled non-partisan coverage of politics,
money seemed to flood newsrooms. The electoral content and the electoral light-hearted news, popular gameshows,
advertising market reached an estimated authorities asked social platforms to and action movies, the general interest
€778m78 – a record level. Another €180m delete his posts and that he respect channel ProTV remains the top brand
came from the state budget, for the public electoral law. TikTok did not comply, so the online and offline. Leading brands include
television broadcaster, public radio, and media dubbed Mr Georgescu the ‘TikTok Romanian-owned Antena 1, Realitatea TV,
the national press agency. Political parties candidate’. DNR data show that 25% of our România TV, HotNews, and Adevărul,
and candidates used at least another respondents use TikTok as a news source. Czech-owned ProTV and Europa FM, and
€150m from public funds for The European Commission opened an Swiss-owned Libertatea, alongside public
communication campaigns, according to investigation into TikTok. radio and television. Digi 24 and Kanal D
Expert Forum, a think tank, and Snoop, belong to publicly quoted companies in
an investigative news site. In a historic judgment, the Constitutional Romania and Turkey respectively.
Court decided that a social media-based
Some of this public money was used to buy disinformation campaign had prevented Two new online brands, Recorder and
positive coverage which, surprisingly, was a free vote and cancelled the presidential G4Media, have a different business model.
allowed by the National Audiovisual elections. Electoral authorities Recorder is known for investigative and
Council. ActiveWatch, an NGO, and Snoop disqualified Mr Georgescu from the new explanatory video journalism. Its podcast,
revealed that television stations charged presidential race. launched in 2023, became a favourite
candidates for paid broadcasts which, source for daily news briefs among
although labelled as electoral programmes, The re-run poll which took place in May podcast listeners last year. G4Media
were made by the stations’ journalists at a 2025 was won by the pro-western mayor of originated as an investigative and hard
cost of up to €200,000 each. Bucharest, Nicușor Dan, who gained 7.2% news site, covering politics, justice, and
more votes than right-wing party leader corruption, and later broadened out. Both
Despite all this spending on traditional George Simion, Georgescu’s ‘protégé’. Recorder and G4Media rely on donations,
channels, a candidate with no electoral grants, and advertising. Their arrival in our
staff, no party, zero declared electoral Earlier, during several street protests,
list of top online brands marks a new era
budget, and very limited exposure in Georgescu supporters attacked journalists
for Romanian newsrooms, providing some
mainstream media won most of the votes and the police. He is now facing six
hope for the sustainability of quality
in the first round of presidential elections criminal charges linked to his presidential
journalism.
in November 2024. Călin Georgescu campaign, including incitement to
campaigned on social platforms like undermine the constitutional order. Raluca-Nicoleta Radu
Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok with University of Bucharest
The cancelled presidential elections and
anti-NATO, anti-European Union, pro- increasing tension in international
Russia, and far-right messages. He called relations heightened both the anxiety of
for the abolition of political parties and the digital audiences and their appetite for
dismemberment of Ukraine between its news. Mainstream newsrooms and
neighbours. Declassified intelligence investigative teams are still setting the
reports, criminal investigations, journalists, public agenda, but just under a quarter of
and cyber-activists revealed that part of Mr digital audiences indicate that their main
Georgescu’s support came from a network news sources are social media, podcasts,
of Russian-affiliated webpages, websites, or AI chatbots. These are the audiences

78
Initiative. (2024). Media Factbook. Romania 2024. https://www.mediafactbook.ro/
79
Martinescu et al. (2024). Networks of Influence: Decoding Foreign Meddling in Romania’s Elections. The Foreign Policy Center. https://fpc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/
Networks-of-Influence-Decoding-foreign-meddling-in-Romanias-elections-2024.pdf
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Romania
layers: 103
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE ProTV 49
10 ProTV News online 26
7
Antena 1 9
30 Digi24 online 7
22
TOP BRANDS
Digi24 9
29 Adevărul online 13
19
% Weekly usage
Realitatea Plus 5
25 Libertatea online 11
18
Weekly use România TV 8
24 Stiripesurse.ro 10
17
TV, radio & print Libertatea 12
17 România TV online 5
14
3 days per week or more Adevărul 12
17 HotNews 7
13
TV, radio & print
Antena 3 CNN 5
16 Ziare.com 7
12
Weekly use
TVR (public broadcaster) 7
15 Yahoo! News 4
11
online brands
Kanal D News 6
15 Mediafax 7
11
3 days per week or more
online brands Regional or local newspaper 10
13 Antena 1 online 4
10
Radio Europa FM 5
12 Recorder 4
10

12%
Radio România (public broadcaster) 6
12 Regional or local newspaper online 8
10
B1 TV 5
11 Click online 7
10
pay for Prima TV 6
10 G4media 4
9
ONLINE NEWS Other news media from outside Romania 9
10 Ziarul Financiar online 6
9

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

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We introduced education quotas in 2023 to make data more representative of national populations. Part of the declines in reach in the
source chart between 2022 and 2023 will be because there are more people with lower levels of education in our sample now, who
typically have lower interest in news.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2017–25 Social media
News podcasts 13% 2017–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 5%
100% 100%
88%
84%
79%
70% 72%
65%
60% 56% 54%
50% 46% 50%

29%
22% 17%
8%
0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Many brands faced a sharp decrease in trust in the last year, perhaps linked to a
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
strong campaign against mainstream newsrooms from far-right leaders. By trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
contrast, trust in the 24-hour news channel Realitatea Plus, which endorsed Călin Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
Georgescu and the far-right narrative after the November presidential elections, is Adevărul 45% 29% 26%
stable. As a result of its position the channel attracted fines from the regulator and Antena 1 46% 22% 33%
the withdrawal of advertising. Antena 3 CNN 37% 21% 42%
Digi 24 51% 22% 27%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2017–25 HotNews 46% 28% 27%
100% Kanal D 44% 29% 27%
Libertatea 42% 30% 27%
ProTV 59% 19% 23%

26%
Radio România (public broadcaster) 55% 26% 20%
50%
39% Realitatea Plus 47% 21% 32%
26% Regional or local newspaper 44% 33% 23%
OVERALL TRUST România TV 39% 24% 37%
0%
=44/48 markets Știri pe surse 44% 30% 26%
2017 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ TVR (public broadcaster) 51% 25% 24%
Ziare.com 41% 32% 27%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
55
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 66.42 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

24%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 50% (+4) 73% 4 WhatsApp 22% (-1) 66%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 31% (+3) 65% 5 Instagram 13% (+2) 34%
via social, messaging,
3 TikTok 25% (+9) 42% 6 Facebook Messenger 10% (-2) 38%
or email
104 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

SERBIA
The media market in Serbia is oversaturated, while being poorly
regulated and highly politically controlled. However, following an
accident in November 2024, when 16 people were killed by the
collapse of a concrete railway station roof in Serbia’s second city,
Novi Sad, anti-government protests followed as protesters held the
government responsible. Population 7.1m
Internet penetration 85%

Students and young people have been RTV Pink, TV Happy, TV Prva, and locally owned tabloid press which are
active in organising continuous and TV B92. RTS continues to attract the criticised as being major producers of
increasingly large protests throughout largest audiences, with its nightly news hate speech and fake news. According
the country since November 2024. Their bulletin attracting an average of 2.5 to the Press Council, three tabloids (Alo,
complaints of government corruption million viewers, and it is just ahead of Informer, and Srpski Telegraf ) violated the
and dysfunctional institutions led to the commercial TV Pink channel in the Code of Ethics more than 4,000 times
the resignation of the prime minister industry ratings.82 Serbian companies in the first nine months of 2024.84 Even
and the government’s fall in January with close political and even family so, in the same period they received over
2025.80 But by April President Aleksandar ties with the political elite own all four €2m of public money in state advertising
Vucic remained in control, after 13 years commercial channels. Taken together, and lucrative contracts with state-
effectively in charge of the country and mainstream television strongly supports owned companies. The electronic media
with an ever-tighter grip on the media. and propagates the political agenda of regulator also awarded a regional TV
Protesters also called for boycotts of President Vucic. A recent study found the licence to Informer at the end of 2024.
pro-government media, culminating with president made over 300 TV appearances
a two-week blockade of the public service during 11 months of 2024, 83 and 141 during Following the much-disputed elections
broadcaster RTS in April 2025. just the first 90 days of 2025. in 2023–24 a new media law was
passed which allowed state-owned
Reporters without Borders’s 2025 Index A major source of independent news telecommunications operator Telekom
placed Serbia 96th out of 180 countries, its comes via cable channels N1 and TV Srbija into the media business. In practice
lowest score in 23 years, and in November Nova, both owned by the United Media Telecom Srbija started its Euronews
RSF denounced attacks on critical Group. Their flagship channel and CNN channel even before that, in 2021, and
journalists, the use of SLAPPS to target affiliate TV N1, was launched in 2014 and its expansion continues with the recent
independent media, and the fact that the emerges as the top news brand overall in acquisition of the Sport Klub and satellite
country had made no progress on freedom our survey, with 40% weekly use offline Total TV from United Media Group, thus
of expression in the previous year.81 and 32% online. It is highly critical of the extending state influence over media
government and that, together with its delivery platforms.
However, while mainstream media are high professionalism and trust, makes it
subject to increased control, our survey the target of frequent attacks and smear Snjezana Milivojevic
reveals that Serbians are Europe’s highest campaigns by state officials and pro- Retired Professor of Public Opinion and Media
users of social media for news (67%) and government media. Studies, University of Belgrade
this is even more important amongst the
younger age groups. Almost half (45%) of Advertising revenue is growing by 5%
18–24 year olds use TikTok for news and a p.a. and is currently over €270m, which is
similar percentage use Instagram. Social insufficient to sustain the 2,153 registered
media has been particularly important in media outlets. Print is losing readers
the present crisis, with student activists and revenues and now accounts for just
using it to spread uncensored news and 5% of advertising revenues compared to
mobilise protests. over 27% for online. The print market is
saturated with nine national dailies and
Terrestrial TV remains a major source eight weeklies, some of which are moving
of news and the average TV daily into online or cable TV. Only three daily
viewing time (5.3 hours) is among papers are in foreign ownership; Blic is
the highest globally. There are two part of the Ringier Group, and Danas
public service media – national Radio and recently established Nova are with
Televizija Srbija (RTS) and the regional the United Media Group. However, the
Radio Televizija Vojvodina (RTV) – newspaper market is dominated by the
alongside four commercial channels:

80
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jan/30/we-are-done-with-corruption-how-the-students-of-serbia-rose-up-against-the-system
81
https://rsf.org/en/serbia-weak-link-europe-belgrade-rsf-urges-government-act-press-freedom-and-against-propaganda
82
https://www.rts.rs/rts/rts-predstavlja/najnovije/5594127/rts-1-i-u-novembru-najgledaniji-u-srbiji-svakodnevno-vise-od-dva-i-po-miliona-gledalaca.html
83
https://n1info.rs/vesti/godisnji-izvestaj-istinomera-za-11-meseci-vucic-se-322-puta-pojavio-na-televiziji/
84
https://savetzastampu.rs/en/pres/monitoring-of-the-press-council-alo-srpski-telegraf-and-informer-violated-the-code-of-journalists-of-serbia-the-most/
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line on News Report 2025 | Serbia
both layers: 105
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYK TV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE RTS News (TV & radio) (public broadcaster) 42
15 N1 online 32
8
N1 10
40 Blic online 13
30
TOP BRANDS
TV Pink 9
25 Telegraf.rs 15
23
% Weekly usage
NovaS 9
25 Kurir online 10
20
Weekly use Blic 12
23 Srbijadanas.com 13
18
TV, radio & print B92 TV 10
22 Mondo.rs 11
18
3 days per week or more Prva Srpska TV 8
19 Danas online 10
18
TV, radio & print
Kurir 9
17 Radio-Television Serbia (RTS) online 7
18
Weekly use
Happy TV 6
16 Nova online 5
16
online brands
Danas 7
12 Investigative Reporting Network online 9
15
3 days per week or more
online brands Nova 6
11 B92 TV online 6
14
Informer 5
11 Ju ne vesti online 5
12
Euronews 6
11 RTS TV News: 34% TV Pink online 4
12
RTV (Radio-televizija Vojvodine) 6
11 RTS Radio News: 15% Al Jazeera Balkans online 6
12
Vecernje Novosti 7
10 RTV TV News: 8% Informer online 5
11
Other news media from outside Serbia 6
9 RTV Radio News: 4% Prva Srpska TV online 5
11

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Television news remains an important source of news for older Serbs but younger groups prefer to access online. Social media is widely used
across generations with Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok the main networks for news.

SOURCES OF NEWS DEVICES FOR NEWS

TV Radio Print Computer Smartphone

54% 21% 15% 67% 87%

Any online* News websites/apps Social media Tablet

85% 53% 67% 27%

* Incl. news websites/apps, social media and video networks, news podcasts (10%), and AI chatbots (6%)

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the below brands were included in the survey.
Overall trust is amongst the lowest in our survey at 27%. News media are widely
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
seen as subject to undue influence from politicians and businessmen. Most brands trusted brands as it is not exhaustive.
in our list are more distrusted than trusted and some of the most widely used Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
brands, Informer and TV Pink, are the most distrusted. Meanwhile the more critical Blic 31% 25% 44%
media, N1, Nova, Danas, and Vreme, have higher levels of audience trust. Danas 40% 27% 33%
Informer 21% 17% 62%
Kurir 24% 20% 55%
NIN 36% 29% 35%
Nova.rs 46% 23% 31%

27% 58%
Politika 31% 26% 43%
Radio-televizija Srbije (RTS) 34% 24% 43%
TV Happy 24% 19% 57%
OVERALL TRUST MISINFORMATION CONCERN
TV N1 49% 21% 30%
43/48 markets 22/48 markets
TV Nova S 44% 24% 32%
TV Pink 21% 17% 63%
TV Prva 34% 23% 42%
Vecernje Novosti 30% 25% 45%
Vreme 40% 31% 29%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
96
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 53.55 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

29%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 45% 70% 4 TikTok 21% 38%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 33% 75% 5 Viber 18% 67%
via social, messaging,
3 Instagram 33% 62% 6 X 14% 22%
or email
106 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

SLOVAKIA
The top media-related story in the first full year of the fourth Fico
government was its attempt to capture Slovakia’s public service
broadcaster. Meanwhile the intensity of verbal attacks on journalists
working for traditional media brands by (mostly) government
politicians rose another notch.
Population 5.7m
Internet penetration 90%

A new law on Slovak Television and After protesting live on air last May about Threats and harassment against
Radio (STVR) – as the national public management interference in editorial journalists increased by more than 50%
broadcaster was rechristened – came freedoms, presenter Michal Kovačič (the compared with 2023, according to the Ján
into force in July 2024 in spite of protests third most-followed Slovak journalist on Kuciak Investigative Centre. Kristína
by media workers from inside and Instagram according to figures compiled Kövešová (Markíza), the most followed
outside the corporation and other by the PR agency New School Slovak journalist on Instagram, was
sectors of society. The speed of the Communications85) left the leading TV assaulted in Trnava while filming a report
legislative process, the lack of public station Markíza to found an online TV about gang-related violence.87
and expert discussion, the sacking of the channel, 360°. The new channel was
previous director general, and above all launched on the anniversary of the At a press conference following the
the broadcaster’s exposure to November 1989 revolution after a approval of the state budget on 3
significantly greater political control successful crowdfunding campaign, which December 2024, Prime Minister Robert
under the terms of the new law, were the raised over €500,000 in September 2024. Fico made one of his most direct attacks
principal sources of controversy. Now yet on the (mainstream) Slovak media,
financed directly from the state budget, Two other well-known TV presenters also repeatedly accusing them of deceiving the
the absence of a specified annual established new online projects. Miroslav public, and telling the public to stop
allocation places the organisation in a Frindt, one of many leading journalists believing the media. He was reacting to a
relationship of severe dependency. who quit Slovak Television or Slovak Radio series of reports claiming that the
in reaction to the new public service fractious relations within the governing
In spite of the haste with which the law broadcasting law, left to briefly front a coalition were preventing parliament
went through parliament, its nine-member Slovak version of the Czech internet TV from working properly.
council was still incomplete nine months channel DVTV, before announcing a new
later, mainly due to disagreements within project to be called publiq.sk. Petr Bielik Although Slovaks have a lower-than-
the government coalition and in left TA3 to set up Bielik Online – a linear average interest in all kinds of news, they
parliament, which elects five council channel mixing news, current affairs, represent an outlier among countries
members. At the time of writing only the and music. Publiq.sk, like 360°, is set covered by the DNR in declaring a greater
members appointed directly by Ministries to concentrate on interviews. These interest in local than national news.
of Finance (1) and Culture (3) were known. ventures could offer politicians an This is despite large swathes of the
The Minister of Culture’s nominee, her alternative platform to the main TV country being ‘local news deserts’,
right-hand man Lukáš Machala, aroused channels and help combat the rising according to Transparency International.
widespread concerns. Following the challenge from partisan media and social Social media and newspapers – which
council’s suspension, in March 2025 STVR media platforms, predominantly on the could include the newsletters published
was temporarily being run by a populist right. by many local councils – represent the
government appointee. most valued sources of local news.
An International Press Institute fact-
One of the most striking programming finding mission to Slovakia in November Andrea Chlebcová Hečková
changes since the organisational 2024 warned of the danger of media Constantine the Philosopher University, Nitra
restructuring has been to the format of capture posed by the changes to the Simon Smith
traditional weekend political debates, national broadcaster, and the use of Charles University, Prague
which have repeatedly featured the prime economic pressure against independent
minister or the president speaking media through the ‘weaponisation’ of state
one-to-one with a presenter without any advertising. In light of the recent passage
opposition representative. Other of the European Media Freedom Act,
discussion programmes have effectively it identified Slovakia as ‘a crucial test case
been depoliticised, focusing instead on for the EU’s commitment to safeguarding
philosophical or social issues. democratic values and media
independence across its member states’.86

85
https://www.newschool.sk/media-a-ich-novinari-kto-ma-na-socialnych-sietach-navrch/
86
https://ipi.media/media-freedom-in-slovakia-under-threat/
87
https://cpj.org/2024/11/slovak-journalist-kristina-kovesova-physically-attacked-injured-on-assignment/
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Slovakia
layers: 107
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE TV Markíza 41
14 aktuality.sk 34
15
TV JOJ 15
39 topky.sk 12
23
TOP BRANDS
STVR/RTVS (public broadcaster) 13
37 tvnoviny.sk 11
18
% Weekly usage
Rádio Expres 11
27 sme.sk 9
17
Weekly use TA3 9
24 spravy.rtvs.sk 6
15
TV, radio & print Nový Cas 10
14 ta3.com 8
15
3 days per week or more Fun rádio 6
11 cas.sk 7
14
TV, radio & print
Rádio Vlna 4
11 pravda.sk 7
14
Weekly use
Rádio Europa 2 5
10 dennikn.sk 7
14
online brands
SME 7
10 refresher.sk 6
12
3 days per week or more
online brands Regional or local newspaper 8
9 startitup.sk 6
12
Plus 7 dní 6
8 noviny.sk 7
11

12%
Pravda 5
7 pluska.sk 6
9
Denník N 5
7 hnonline.sk 4
7
pay for Plus Jeden Deň 4
6 dnes24.sk 5
7
ONLINE NEWS Rádio Jemné 3 5 Regional or local newspaper website 5
7

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We introduced education quotas in 2023 to make data more representative of national populations. Part of the declines in reach in the
source chart between 2022 and 2023 will be because there are more people with lower levels of education in our sample now, who
typically have lower interest in news.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2017–25 Social media
News podcasts 9% 2017–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 4%
100% 100%
86%
79% 75%
68%
64%
58% 56% 52%
50% 47% 50%
41%
29%
24%
16%
9%
0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Overall trust in the media fell once again, to a new low of 23%, with many of our 15
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
monitored brands seeing a decline in their trust scores. The biggest fall – by 8pp – trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
affected Slovakia’s public broadcaster (PSB) following its effective capture by the state. Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
Aktuality 42% 28% 30%
Denník N 36% 24% 40%
Hospodárske noviny 44% 33% 23%
Nový Cas 25% 30% 45%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2017–25 Plus 28% 31% 41%
100% Pravda 38% 34% 29%
Rádio Expres 47% 32% 21%
Refresher.sk 30% 36% 34%

23%
Regional or local newspaper 45% 35% 20%
50%
SME 38% 29% 33%
27% 23% TA3 51% 27% 22%
OVERALL TRUST Topky 26% 33% 41%
0%
46/48 markets TV JOJ 44% 27% 29%
2017 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ TV Markiza 39% 25% 36%
STVR/RTVS (public broadcaster) 48% 26% 26%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
38
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 71.93 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

21%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 43% (-6) 67% 4 Facebook Messenger 12% (-4) 47%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 21% (-3) 56% 5 WhatsApp 9% (-1) 39%
via social, messaging,
3 Instagram 14% (-2) 34% 6 TikTok 7% (+1) 15%
or email
108 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

SPAIN
Spain’s media landscape has been shaped by political pressures, legal
disputes, and debates over public service broadcasting. Elections to
the European Parliament and regional assemblies have intensified
tensions, with both the government and opposition using accusations
of disinformation as a political tool. Meanwhile, regulatory changes and
government interventions have sparked concerns about press freedom, Population 48m
media independence, and the financial sustainability of news outlets. Internet penetration 95%

Political interference in the media has a simple majority. It also significantly Joseph Oughourlian, became Chairman of
raised concerns about press freedom in strengthened the president’s authority El País in March 2025 after Carlos Núñez
Spain. Both the government and while diminishing the board’s role in resigned when plans for a new digital
opposition have been accused of decision-making. With an annual budget terrestrial television channel were
pressuring journalists and shaping media of €1.2bn, 6,500 employees, and losses rejected. Meanwhile, Vocento, which owns
narratives. The administration that would total around €30m in 2024, ABC and 18 regional newspapers, recently
differentiates between those established López introduced a restructuring plan closed its digital sports outlet Relevo,
outlets which it supports and so-called that included creating a central news hub, resulting in around 72 journalists losing
‘pseudo-media’, which it claims promote structural reforms, and a 15% reduction in their jobs, and reporting losses of €92m.
far-right interests. Critics argue this management roles. However, critics in the
framing is used to discredit dissenting media and politics, including opposition Artificial intelligence is reshaping the
voices, both in mainstream press and parties and some journalists, argue that media landscape. According to a survey of
online platforms, particularly those these changes primarily serve to 60 Spanish media executives, 57% of news
covering sensitive trials involving the consolidate government influence over organisations have already incorporated
prime minister’s family and other public broadcasting. AI tools, while a further 37% plan to do so
government officials. soon. AI is primarily being used for content
One of the most notable shifts in Spanish generation (68%), data analysis (63%), and
As part of its Action Plan for Spanish television has been the rivalry between automating editorial and production
Democracy, the government has allocated two very popular talk shows, Pablo processes (63%) (KPMG 2025).
€124.5m in media subsidies, officially to Motos’s El Hormiguero and La Revuelta,
support digitalisation and quality hosted by David Broncano. The latter Finally, despite an increase in advertising
journalism. Authorities argue this funding recently moved to public broadcaster investment, concerns remain over the
will help struggling traditional media RTVE, a decision reportedly driven by José sustainability of traditional media.
compete with sensationalist online Pablo López when he was RTVE’s Director Challenges include the rapid growth of
outlets. Another controversial measure of Content. The government’s backing of digital advertising, the dominance of global
is a proposed mandatory media register, Broncano’s show, as well as the very tech platforms, and changing consumer
requiring outlets to disclose ownership favourable terms offered to the show, has habits. Spain’s advertising market saw
and advertising revenues. While the sparked speculation that his appointment moderate growth in 2024, with total
government frames this as a transparency was part of a broader media strategy. investment rising by 3.8% to €13,080m.
initiative, critics warn it could be used to Although La Revuelta initially came close Television remained the leading
pressure media critical of the to overtaking El Hormiguero with a 17.1% advertising medium (€1,857m, +2.1%),
administration. Additionally, concerns audience share, Motos’s show has since followed by search advertising (€977m,
persist that increasing financial reliance regained its dominant position in late- +2.7%) and social media (€856m, +8.5%).88
on state funding may compromise night television, maintaining its critical Aurken Sierra, Roncesvalles Labiano
editorial independence. stance towards the government. Juangarcía, María Fernanda Novoa-Jaso,
and Alfonso Vara Miguel
Changes in media ownership have further Paywalls are a relatively recent
University of Navarra
shaped the industry. At the end of 2024, development in Spain. In terms of
following a decree law (a fast-track subscription numbers, El País remains
legislative process) approved by the dominant with 400,000 subscribers, while
government in October, José Pablo López El Mundo (163,000), La Vanguardia
was appointed as the new president of (145,000), and Expansión (110,000) are the
RTVE, Spain’s public broadcaster. The other front-runners. Despite steady
reform increased the RTVE governing growth, much of the subscription increase
board from 10 to 15 members and lowered is driven by promotional offers. In the
the criteria for appointments by the press sector, significant changes are
Parliament from a two-thirds majority to underway: PRISA’s majority shareholder,

88
Press release. InfoAdex 2025 study. https://infoadex.es/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Nota-de-Prensa-Estudio_InfoAdex-2025-1-1.pdf
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line on News Report 2025 | Spain 109
both layers:
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE Antena 3 News 38
10 Antena 3 online 17
4
RTVE (public broadcaster) 9
27 El País online 6
13
TOP BRANDS
LaSexta News 9
23 OKdiario.com 6
12
% Weekly usage
Telecinco News 6
21 20 Minutos online 6
12
Weekly use Cuatro News 7
17 El Mundo online 6
12
TV, radio & print Regional/local public TV/radio news 6
17 elDiario.es 6
11
3 days per week or more El País 6
11 RTVE online 5
10
TV, radio & print
Regional or local newspaper 6
10 ElConfidencial.com 5
10
Weekly use
COPE News 3
10 Marca online 4
10
online brands
Cadena SER News 4
10 Regional or local newspaper online 4
9
3 days per week or more
online brands 20 Minutos 6
10 ElEspañol.com 5
9
Regional/local private TV/radio news 4
9 Other digital-born news website 6
8

10%
El Mundo 5
9 Regional/local public TV/radio news online 3
8
Marca (sports) 3
7 Publico.es 4
7
pay for 3
Onda Cero 6 ABC online 3
7
ONLINE NEWS ABC 4
6 HuffPost 3
7

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Declining interest in news affects all sources, with consumption at its lowest since 2015. Meanwhile, 4% use AI chatbots or podcasts for news.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2013–25 Social media
News podcasts 4% 2013–25* 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 4%
100% 100%

79% 80%
72% 69%
61%
54% 56% 53%
50% 46% 50%
35% 32%
28%
21%
13%
0% 0%
2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots * 2018 figures for computer use were likely overstated due to an error in polling

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
With disinformation becoming a topic on the political and media agenda and being
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
used as an electoral weapon, media trust has fallen to its lowest level in the past trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
decade (31%), affecting all selected news brands. Local and regional newspapers Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
remain the most trusted by the public (51%), while the public broadcaster RTVE 20 Minutos 38% 36% 26%
has dropped by 5pp (48%). ABC 41% 29% 30%
Antena 3 50% 25% 25%
Cadena SER 45% 28% 27%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 COPE 43% 26% 31%
100% El Mundo 41% 30% 29%
El País 43% 28% 29%
ElConfidencial.com 36% 36% 28%

31%
elDiario.es 38% 36% 26%
50%
LaSexta 42% 24% 34%
34% 31% OKdiario.com 31% 32% 37%
OVERALL TRUST Onda Cero 46% 31% 23%
=37/48 markets
0% Regional or local newspaper 51% 31% 18%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ RTVE 48% 23% 29%
Telecinco 32% 27% 40%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
23
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 77.35 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

32%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 WhatsApp 24% (-3) 77% 4 Instagram 18% (-3) 55%
SHARE NEWS 2 Facebook 24% (-2) 55% 5 X 15% (-1) 24%
via social, messaging,
3 YouTube 19% (-3) 59% 6 TikTok 11% (-) 31%
or email
110 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

SWEDEN
Sweden has robust public service broadcasters that operate alongside
a well-established commercial news sector that has cultivated a
strong subscriber base for digital content. While media ownership
remains concentrated, government strategies prioritise diverse voices
through financial support. Sweden is digitally advanced and thus
online news consumption and social media use is widespread and Population 10.7m
artificial intelligence is gaining significance. Internet penetration 96%

Sweden’s news media landscape, though prices which include home delivery, but Alkompis, targeted at the Arabic-speaking
robust by international standards, is 31% of our survey respondents pay for community in Sweden. Aftonbladet selects
undergoing a profound transformation. news online, placing Sweden second after content from its podcasts and uses AI for
The public service media (PSM) consists Norway among our countries surveyed. translation to Arabic, which is then
of Swedish Television (SVT), Swedish There is less loyalty among online checked by Alkompis staff. In addition,
Radio (SR), and Utbildningsradion (UR). subscribers, however, compared to print, Svenska Dagbladet have developed a
SVT and SR each produce and publish with some users signing up for short-term format for quick and concise news reading
daily local and national online news on special subscription offers. Newspapers’ called SvD Kompakt, designed to appeal
their own website. They also publish overall reader revenue remained stable to ‘the young and curious’.
some news across social media between 2023 and 2024, but its share
platforms, although SVT has adopted an of the total revenues has increased Swedish publishers have moved ahead
increasingly restrictive approach to what slightly due to the continued decline in with AI. Swedish Radio have long used it
it publishes, in continued efforts to print advertising. for audio transcriptions and synthetic
reduce their dependence on platforms voices, and in Q1 2025 launched their
(Olsen et al. 2024). Major national publishers, such as those proprietary AI chatbot for news.
within the Schibsted and Bonnier groups, Norwegian Schibsted-owned Aftonbladet
Sweden is also known for having a are among the most successful with the started an AI hub in 2023 which is now
sustainable and healthy commercial news digital subscription models, with Bonnier integrated into the newsroom that
media sector, which is characterised by a News+ recognised for its comprehensive produces article summaries, converts
mix of national and local newspapers. The content offering. In 2024 Bonnier News sound to text, and creates subtitles. AI has
government has long supported weaker Local (BNL) signed a deal with local media also been used to systematically analyse
publishers, a testament to the nation’s company NWT in which they purchased their news output for patterns and biases.
commitment to media plurality. Swedish shares in each other’s companies. In early 2025 Schibsted signed a two-year
news publishers have continuously lost Publishers generally offer free content for contract with OpenAI. The full details are
advertising revenues, once the cornerstone basic news and paywalled access to confidential, but Schibsted has announced
of their business model, largely because premium services, including specialised that journalists producing news used by
tech giants such as Alphabet and Meta content and lifestyle offerings. The larger OpenAI, which makes explicit reference to
have come to dominate digital advertising. news publishers have expanded into audio Schibsted titles, will be given an annual
Overall advertising revenue for Swedish formats, including podcasts and TV, and bonus of roughly €500.
news publishers decreased by the their audio-visual content can be cross-
equivalent of €15.8m in 2024 compared to promoted on their proprietary platforms Oscar Westlund
the previous year, totalling €217.7m. While as well as on social media platforms in Oslo Metropolitan University and University
most advertising revenue still comes from attempts to stimulate engagement among of Gothenburg
print (€137m in 2024), this declines every (younger) target groups. Publishers are
year and was 8% down in 2024. Newspaper also exercising caution regarding platform
revenues from online advertising increased dependency, aiming to maintain control
slightly, reaching €79m in 2024 or 37% of over their distribution and content.
all revenues (TU Mediefakta 2025). Swedish PSM are required to own and
control their distribution infrastructure,
Amid the downward spiral for advertising,
minimising reliance on external platform
publishers have been compelled to
companies, and SVT has worked hard to
implement cost-cutting measures and
reduce its dependency.
seek alternative revenue streams, with
reader subscriptions having emerged as The Swedish News Media Association’s
the primary focus. Newspapers continue innovation of the year award went to the
to make most of their money from print integration-oriented news podcast Daily
subscriptions, for which they charge high Arabic, developed by Aftonbladet and
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Sweden
layers: 111
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE 12
51 Aftonbladet online 44
10
SVT News (public television)
12
46 SVT News online 11
37
TOP BRANDS TV4
Expressen online 10
31
% Weekly usage SR News (public radio) 9
33
TV4 News online 9
21
Regional or local newspaper 8
20
Weekly use Regional or local newspaper online 5
18
TV, radio & print Aftonbladet 6
16
Dagens Nyheter online 6
16
3 days per week or more Expressen 4
11 SR Nyheter online 5
13
TV, radio & print
Dagens Nyheter 4
9 Nyheter 24 (News 24) 8
13
Weekly use
BBC News 4
8 Svenska Dagbladet online 4
10
online brands
3
Svenska Dagbladet 6 Göteborgs-Posten online 3
8
3 days per week or more
online brands Dagens Industri online 3
8
3
CNN 6
BBC News online 3
7
Other news media from outside Sweden 5

31%
Sydsvenska Dagbladet online 2 5
Dagens Industri 5
Nyheter Idag 3 5
pay for Sydsvenska Dagbladet 4 CNN.com 2 5
ONLINE NEWS Göteborgs-Posten 4 Other online sites from outside Sweden 2 5

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

CHANGING MEDIA Tisa Sans Pro Light
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Light
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking
90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White
Swedes mainly access news online, with print’s role halving in the past decade, but TV remains a very important source of news, mostly via
public broadcaster SVT but also TV4.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2016–25 Social media
News podcasts 11% 2016–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 4%
100% 100%
89% 86% 82%
72% 69%
63% 64% 65%
56%
50% 45% 50%
43%
34% 32%
21%

0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust in news overall has increased to 53%, and is higher for news media that
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
people use themselves. Swedes generally trust the two PSM organisations and local trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
newspapers the most, whereas the trust for alternative news media is lower, and Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
fell further in the last year. Aftonbladet 53% 19% 28%
Dagens Industri 69% 20% 11%
Dagens Nyheter 69% 16% 15%
Expressen 52% 22% 26%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2016–25 Fria Tider 23% 24% 53%
100% Göteborgs-Posten 60% 25% 14%
Nya Tider 24% 28% 48%
Nyheter 24 40% 30% 30%

53%
53% Nyheter Idag 37% 32% 31%
50%
Regional or local newspaper 73% 16% 11%
40%
Samhällsnytt 31% 31% 38%
OVERALL TRUST Svenska Dagbladet 67% 19% 14%
0%
9/48 markets Sveriges Radio (SR) News 76% 11% 13%
2016 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Sveriges Television (SVT) News 76% 10% 14%
TV4 News 62% 21% 17%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
4
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 88.13 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

20%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 24% (-1) 69% 4 X 9% (-) 16%
SHARE NEWS 2 Instagram 16% (+1) 60% 5 Facebook Messenger 9% (+1) 53%
via social, messaging,
3 YouTube 15% (-2) 60% 6 TikTok 8% (+3) 19%
or email
112 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

SWITZERLAND
Layoffs have become commonplace in Switzerland’s small
media market. The economic situation is difficult for private
media companies and also perhaps especially for the public
broadcaster, which could face budget cuts of between 20% to
50% in the next few years.
Population 8.9m
Internet penetration 97%

The business of news is becoming providers of more mainstream youth- halved, depending on the outcome of a
increasingly difficult, even though the oriented video-rich online content. referendum put forward by right-wing
number of people who say they pay for politicians from German-speaking
online news has recently increased (to There are no immediate plans for
Switzerland, which could take place in
22%). Advertising revenues are still down subsidies to support online journalism.
2026. Parliament is currently discussing
compared to a decade ago, and almost However, after successful lobbying by
whether to propose an alternative with
half of the adult population belongs to publishers, legacy media will get
slightly lower fee reductions. The federal
the group of ‘news deprived’ users with a additional subsidies for print distribution
government has separately already
clearly limited news diet (fög – University (over €30m p.a.). Even so, in 2024 the
announced a slight reduction by 2029.
of Zurich 2024). Against this background, larger companies announced the closure
Even in that ‘best case’ scenario, SRG SSR
journalist layoffs intensified in 2024. of their few remaining printing presses.
expects its budget to fall by almost 20%,
Ringier, which publishes tabloid-like Publishers are also hoping that a new
with a loss of roughly 1,000 jobs by 2029,
brands such as Blick, is losing about 50 draft law due in 2025 will force platforms
and it has already announced more than
journalists, as is TX Group, the company to pay copyright fees for link previews,
100 redundancies and the closure of
publishing brands such as Tages-Anzeiger news snippets, and possibly also
popular entertainment and long-form
and 24heures. Both companies are now summaries by AI chatbots. It remains to
culture and science programmes.
increasingly reliant on revenues from be seen whether and how that domestic
their digital marketplaces and are debate will be shaped by international Several companies are experimenting
centralising news production across tech platforms such as Meta, Google, and with AI within newly established
some titles to save money, which raises OpenAI, which have just expanded their guidelines. Most are proceeding with
concern about the dilution of journalistic offices in Switzerland. caution in the editorial space, using AI
resources and editorial distinctiveness at primarily to generate summaries or
The larger publishers are still pursuing a
the local level. CH Media, owner of regionally customised short items or to
strategy to pool their data together in a
watson.ch and many regional brands, reformat content. Surprisingly though, in
Digital Alliance. While the sharing of
closed several of its regional platforms a special anniversary edition, 20 Minuten,
traffic and user data seems to be on track
which had bundled print products, radio Switzerland’s largest print and online
in their project OneID, their project
stations, and online news sites. By brand, showed non-declared AI-
OneLog, which involves a shared, single
comparison, the NZZ media company generated pictures of fake members of
login across news brands, is still only
seems to be doing better, as it reduces its the public giving testimonials about why
partially operational after a cyber-attack
share in the joint venture with regionally they like 20 Minuten. Irrespective of this
in late 2024.
oriented CH Media and enjoys rising episode, Swiss audiences remain
numbers of subscribers and revenue with Most of the discussion focuses on the sceptical towards the use of generative
its own core brands, including in the public broadcaster SRG SSR, whose SRF AI, expect transparency, and believe that
larger market in Germany. A small and RTS brands continue to be the media companies do not use AI
number of online pure players focusing most-used and most trusted. SRG SSR responsibly enough (Vogler et al. 2024).
on ‘slow journalism’ or on (hyper)local faces substantial budget cuts of
Linards Udris and Mark Eisenegger
news have gained a foothold, such as uncertain amounts, given rising inflation
Research Center for the Public Sphere & Society
Republik, Hauptstadt in Bern, or Bajour and declining advertising revenue but
(fög), Department of Communication and
in Basel. However, these niche players especially as the licence fee (currently
Media Research (IKMZ)/University of Zurich
currently operate with relatively small equivalent to €350 per household p.a.)
budgets and audiences. The growing plus the fee paid by large companies,
audience using TikTok for news (+7pp), which contributes around 10% of its
particularly with under-35s and in overall revenue, is expected to shrink. In
French-speaking Switzerland, suggests a ‘worst case’ scenario for SRG SSR the
there may be potential for Swiss revenues from the licence fee could be
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital News Report 2025 | Switzerland 113
Axis Line on both layers:
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT (FRENCH SPEAKING)
90% CMYKONLINE
Black (FRENCH SPEAKING)
AND ONLINE RTS News (public broadcaster) 55
16 20 Minutes online 47
12
20 Minutes 44
13 RTS News online 28
15
TOP BRANDS French commerical TV news 26
8 24 heures online 15
5
% Weekly usage French public TV news 23
10 Blue News 14
6
24 heures 16
8 Le Matin online 14
5
Weekly use Commercial radio news 15
6 Blick online 14
7
TV, radio & print Le Matin Dimanche 13
9 Watson.ch 13
6
3 days per week or more BBC News 13
5 Teletext online 11
4
TV, radio & print Le Temps 13
6 BBC News online 11
5
Weekly use Regional or local newspapers (e.g. Le Quotidien Jurassien) 12
7 Yahoo! News 10
5
online brands CNN 11
4 RTS TV News: 41% Le Temps online 10
5
3 days per week or more Tribune de Genève 10 5 RTS Radio News: 28% MSN News 4 9
online brands Axis Line on both layers: Axis Line on both layers:
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT (GERMAN SPEAKING)
90% CMYKONLINE
Black (GERMAN SPEAKING)
SRF News (public broadcaster) 56
15 20 Minuten online 46
10

Text:20 Minuten 36
11 Numbers: SRF News online
Text: 30
13 Numbers:
Tisa Sans
German Pro Light
public TV news 22
10 Tisa Sans Pro Medium Tisa Sans Pro Light
Blick online 26
8 Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking
Commercial TV news (e.g. Tele90%
Züri,CMYK
Tele Bärn, TeleM1)
Black 18
7 White 90% CMYK Black Watson 22
10 White
German commercial TV news 17
6 Blue News 14
6
Blick 17
7 nau.ch 14
8
Commercial radio news 16
8 NZZ online 11
5

22% Regional or local newspaper

Tages-Anzeiger 10
4
16
9 Tages-Anzeiger online
Teletext online
10
4
10
5
pay for ONLINE NEWS Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) 8
4 GMX 9
5
SonntagsZeitung 8
5 SRF TV News: 38% Regional or local newspaper online 9
4
French 24% | German 21% BBC News 8
4 SRF Radio News: 34% BBC News online 9
5

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2016–25 Social media
News podcasts 10% 2016–25* 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 8%
100% Text: 100% Numbers: Text: Numbers:
Tisa Sans Pro Light Tisa Sans Pro Medium Tisa Sans Pro Light Tisa Sans Pro Medium
82% 6pt w/ -20 tracking
79%
6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking
90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White 77%
69% 61%
63% 60% 62%
50% 47% 51% 50%
40% 36%
32% 29%

0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots * 2018 figures for computer use were likely overstated due to an error in polling

OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2016–25 PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

100% Only the brands listed were included in the survey. It should not be treated as a list of
the most or least trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
All German French
FRENCH GERMAN
53% Brand Trust Neither Don’t Brand Trust Neither Don’t
Trust Trust
50% 50% 49%
46%
42% 40% 20 Minutes 56% 22% 22% 20 Minuten 57% 20% 23%
24 heures 63% 24% 13% Aargauer Zeitung 61% 25% 14%
46% Arcinfo 49% 34% 17% Blick 42% 22% 37%
OVERALL TRUST Blick 47% 31% 22% Blue News 49% 29% 22%
0% 14/48 markets
2016 2025 Blue News 46% 33% 21% Commercial radio news 61% 22% 16%
Overall trust levels tend to fluctuate. After a three-year decline, Commercial radio news 54% 31% 14% Commercial TV news (e.g. Tele Züri) 62% 21% 17%
trust in news has recently increased again, albeit only in German- Commercial TV news 57% 28% 15% GMX 37% 31% 32%
speaking Switzerland. Brands from the public broadcaster
Le Matin 57% 27% 16% MSN News 38% 32% 30%
remain the most trusted in both German-speaking and French-
speaking Switzerland, followed by subscription-based newspaper Le Nouvelliste 54% 32% 14% nau.ch 48% 26% 25%
brands. Less trust is placed in tabloids, digital-born brands, and Le Temps 63% 24% 13% NZZ 70% 16% 14%
news from email providers (Blue News, MSN, Yahoo!, GMX). MSN 32% 36% 32% Regional or local newspaper 69% 19% 12%
Regional or local newspaper 61% 27% 13% Sonntags Zeitung 63% 21% 16%
TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS
RTS News 72% 18% 10% SRF News 76% 12% 12%

Rank Brand For News For All Tribune de Genève 57% 29% 13% Tages Anzeiger 66% 20% 14%
Yahoo! News 34% 35% 32% Watson 51% 25% 23%

1 WhatsApp 26% (+1) 76% Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following brands is? Please use the scale below,
where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand were excluded. Whether respondents
2 YouTube 26% (+3) 60% consider a brand trustworthy is their subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

3 Facebook 22% (+2) 51%

4 Instagram 20% (+3) 48% WORLD PRESS FREEDOM

INDEX SCORE 2025
Score:
83.98 9 / 180
5 TikTok 14% (+7) 25%
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org
114 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

TURKEY
Following the arrest of President Erdoğan’s main political challenger
in March 2025, Turkey witnessed the largest anti-government
protests of the last decade. While the question of whether Erdoğan
will secure a third term as president remains unclear, freedom of
expression and the press in Turkey continue to face serious threats,
with the government intensifying efforts to silence critical voices and Population 86m
restrict independent journalism. Internet penetration 87%

In late March 2025, the arrest of Ekrem correspondent Joakim Medin was One prominent example of the legal
İmamoğlu, the opposition’s Istanbul arrested on charges of ‘insulting the pressures on independent media was in
Mayor, along with around 100 others president’ and ‘belonging to an armed May 2024, when the regulator, RTÜK,
connected to him, sparked widespread terrorist organisation’. Turkish imposed a broadcast ban and fine on Açık
protests across the country. Just before authorities claimed Medin’s arrest was Radyo (Open Radio), an independent
his arrest on corruption charges, unrelated to his journalistic activities.90 Istanbul-based radio station, for ‘inciting
İmamoğlu’s bachelor’s degree was hatred and enmity among the people’
controversially annulled by Istanbul Social media played a significant role in
due to a mention of the ‘Armenian
University, disqualifying him from amplifying both the protests and the
genocide’ by a guest. When RTÜK
running for president. In response, the opposition’s call for a boycott of pro-
revoked their terrestrial broadcast
Republican People’s Party (CHP) invited government media firms and companies
licence in July 2024, Açık Radyo moved
the public to join their 1.7 million as well as a one-day shopping boycott.
operations online as ‘Apaçık Radyo’ (Very
members in showing solidarity with Turkey’s state broadcaster TRT fired
Open Radio). But the closure of the
İmamoğlu, resulting in approximately 15 several actors who used social media to
independent news site, Gazete Duvar,
million votes for his presidential support the shopping boycott and then
showed that legal pressures are not the
candidacy in CHP’s primaries for the next removed a complete series from its
only challenge. While it began amidst the
election. Following his arrest, hundreds streaming platform after the show’s
political unrest following the 2016 coup
of thousands took to the streets, accusing screenwriter declared his solidarity with
attempt, its owner blamed the site’s
the judiciary of political bias, condemning the actors. Additionally, Meta faced a
closure on financial difficulties, largely
arbitrary arrests and mistreatment of substantial fine by the Turkish
due to changes to Google’s algorithm
peaceful protesters, including many government for not complying with
rather than on politics.92
students, as well as the growing restricting content, and X’s Global
Government Affairs team objected to In July 2024, 19 international human
authoritarianism in Turkey.
court orders to block over 700 accounts rights and press freedom organisations
The crackdown was accompanied by of news organisations, journalists, urged the EU to take stronger steps to
intense pressure on mainstream and political figures, and students. protect freedom of expression and
independent media outlets, journalists, journalists’ rights in Turkey, which had
public figures, artists, and ordinary During 2024, Turkish media faced become the country with the highest
citizens. Immediately after İmamoğlu’s significant legal and governmental number of pending cases – around 21,600
arrest, the Governor of Istanbul imposed pressures, with at least 10 journalists – at the European Court of Human
a four-day protest ban, with access to arrested and 57 detained.91 More than 30 Rights.93 According to Freedom House,
journalists were sentenced for offences Turkey also ranks among the top ten
popular social media platforms
such as ‘insulting public officials’, ‘inciting countries that have experienced the
restricted and major metro lines closed.
violence against law enforcement’, sharpest decline in freedoms over the
The High Council for Broadcasting
‘spreading misleading information’, and past decade.
(RTÜK), Turkey’s media regulator,
‘promoting terrorist organisations’. Three
imposed fines and publication bans on
journalists faced charges for insulting the Nic Newman
opposition media, including Halk TV and
president, and around 17 others are Senior Research Associate, Reuters Institute
Tele 1 and a ten-day blackout on Sözcü TV
currently on trial, facing prison sentences
for ‘inciting hatred and enmity’ during
of up to nearly five years for similar
their live coverage of the protests. Eight
offences. By the end of 2024, Article 299
Turkish journalists were subsequently
of the Turkish Penal Code, which covers
brought to trial in April, 89 while two
foreign correspondents faced legal insulting the president, has been used to
action. Mark Lowen, a BBC prosecute over 250 journalists during
correspondent, was deported for ‘being a Erdoğan’s term, with 77 receiving prison
threat to public order’, while Swedish terms or fines.

89
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cz01xgnzv5jo
90
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/mar/30/turkey-says-swedish-journalist-detained-on-terror-charges-and-for-insulting-the-president
91
https://static.bianet.org/2025/01/bia-medya-gozlem-2024.pdf
92
https://www.turkishminute.com/2025/03/12/gazete-duvar-shuts-down-citing-financial-problems-amid-google-algorithm-changes/
93
https://www.mfrr.eu/the-eu-must-do-more-to-prioritise-protecting-media-freedom-and-human-rights-in-turkiye/
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis LineDigital
on bothNews
layers:Report 2025 | Turkey 115
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE NowTV News (formerly Fox)* 44
11 Sondakika.com 27
13
CNN Türk 10
27 NowTV News online 7
26
TOP BRANDS
Show TV 10
25 Sözcü online 7
19
% Weekly usage
Kanal D News 9
23 CNN Türk online 8
18
Weekly use ATV News 9
23 Halk TV News online 5
16
TV, radio & print Habertürk TV 12
23 Mynet 7
15
3 days per week or more NTV News 8
22 Haberler.com 9
15
TV, radio & print
TRT News 9
22 TRT News online 7
15
Weekly use
Halk TV 7
22 Ensonhaber.com 9
15
online brands
Sözcü Gazetesi 11
20 Habertürk online 7
14
3 days per week or more
online brands Sözcü TV 7
20 Hürriyet online 8
14
Star TV 8
19 NTV News online 7
14
A Haber 7
18 ATV News online 6
13
Hürriyet 13
18 Internethaber.com 7
12
Sabah 11
16 Cumhuriyet online 6
12
Cumhuriyet 9
14 Show TV News online 5
11

Text: *Note: Our survey asked about Fox News although the
Numbers: service has now been rebranded asNumbers:
Text: NowTV.
CHANGING MEDIA Tisa Sans Pro Light
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans
This may have slightly Pro Medium
lowered scores for
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Now
Tisa SansTV
ProinLight
this year’s report.
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking
90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White
Television remains an important and influential source of news in Turkey, while print’s decline continues, with weekly readership dropping to
almost a third of its 2015 level.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2015–25 Social media
News podcasts 6% 2015–25* 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 8%
100% 100%
88%
82%
75% 72%
67% 65%
56% 57%
50% 50% 50% 50%
46%
38%
24%
16%
0% 0%
2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots * 2018 figures for computer use were likely overstated due to an error in polling

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust in news in general dropped to its lowest level since 2015. Brands with higher
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
levels of trust such as NowTV News, Sözcü TV, and Halk TV are known for their trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
oppositional stance, while pro-government brands such as the public broadcaster Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
(TRT) consistently have lower trust scores overall in a highly polarised environment. A Haber 37% 16% 47%
ATV 38% 18% 44%
CNN Türk 50% 21% 29%
Cumhuriyet 52% 24% 24%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 Habertürk 51% 23% 26%
100% Halk TV 53% 21% 26%
Hürriyet 42% 25% 33%
Kanal D News 42% 24% 33%

33%
Milliyet 42% 26% 32%
50%
NowTV News 61% 17% 22%
34% 33%
NTV News 52% 23% 25%
OVERALL TRUST Sabah 38% 23% 38%
0%
=33/48 markets
Show TV News 42% 26% 33%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Sözcü TV 54% 19% 27%
TRT News 46% 18% 36%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
159
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 29.4 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

36%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Instagram 40% (+2) 64% 4 X 23% (+1) 31%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 35% (-3) 61% 5 Facebook 22% (-5) 43%
via social, messaging,
3 WhatsApp 23% (-6) 63% 6 TikTok 11% (+1) 23%
or email
 116

SECTION 3
 117

SECTION 3

Analysis by Country and Market

Americas
EUROPE
AMERICAS
3.26 United States 118
3.27 Argentina 120
3.28 Brazil 122
3.29 Canada 124
3.30 Chile 126
3.31 Colombia 128
3.32 Mexico 130
3.33 Peru 132
118 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

UNITED STATES
The first months of the second Trump administration have brought
what Reporters Without Borders calls a ‘war on the press’ on
multiple fronts, from moves to defund public media and dismantle
overseas broadcasting, to attacks on disfavoured news outlets via
lawsuits, access restrictions, and federal investigations. The assault
comes amid wider threats to independent US institutions, including Population 342m
universities, scientific agencies, and the legal profession. Internet penetration 93%

President Trump’s most public and Meta in limbo about antitrust efforts York Times reported that Defense
confrontation has been with the inherited from the previous Secretary Pete Hegseth shared details
Associated Press, shut out of many administration – widely seen as a way of about the Yemen strike in another Signal
White House events after failing to maintaining leverage over the firms. In chat with friends and family, leading to
embrace his renaming of the Gulf of April, Trump approved a second further calls for his resignation.
Mexico. Ordered by the courts to restore extension for TikTok to find a buyer for its
the AP’s access, the new administration US operations to comply with a 2024 law. Criticism has continued to mount against
responded by eliminating the permanent Washington Post chief executive Will
slot for newswires in the White House In July 2024, a Trump campaign rally in Lewis for a string of controversial
press pool. At the same time Trump has Butler, Pennsylvania, took a shocking turn decisions, including a newsroom overhaul
opened up access to creators and when a gunman opened fire, wounding that pushed out Executive Editor Sally
influencers, many of whom played a key Trump and two others and killing one. TV Buzbee and prompted several journalists
role in his election success. networks cut into regularly scheduled to depart for competitors. Layoffs
programming, with the main networks continued at national news organisations,
Meanwhile, Trump has repeated calls for and cable news networks mostly praised including the Post cutting about 100 posts
broadcast network CBS – which he also for their ‘responsible coverage’.95 AP across its business division, the
privately sued for $20bn – to lose its photographer Evan Vucci captured an Associated Press reducing its workforce
broadcast licence, in response to image of Trump, blood smeared on his by 8%, HuffPost laying off nearly 30 staff,
coverage by flagship newsmagazine 60 face from a grazed ear, raising his fist as and Vox Media 12 employees.
Minutes that he said cast him in a an American flag waved in the
negative light.94 As of April 2025, the US background. The instantly iconic image Notable shake-ups in the broadcast and
broadcast regulator under Trump has ran on magazine covers, front pages, and cable landscape include MSNBC cutting
opened complaints against – or websites around the world. ties with host Joy Reid; Lester Holt
investigations into –legacy TV networks stepping down as anchor of NBC Nightly
CBS, NBC, and ABC (but not right-leaning As the election neared, the Washington News; and Jim Acosta, anchor and former
Fox), as well as public broadcasters PBS Post broke with decades of precedent, chief White House correspondent,
and NPR. The White House also proposes and caught its own newsroom off guard, leaving CNN. The troubled news
to eliminate federal support for the by choosing not to endorse a presidential network’s chief, Mark Thompson, has
public service media, just weeks after an candidate. Former Executive Editor teased plans for a subscription-based,
executive order all but shuttered Radio Marty Baron called the decision lifestyle-focused ‘non-news digital
Free Europe and Voice of America. ‘cowardice, a moment of darkness that product’ in 2025.96
will leave democracy as a casualty’. Some
The strategic landscape for major readers cancelled their subscriptions in As the local news crisis continues,
platforms is also in flux. In a dramatic protest. Los Angeles Times owner Patrick student journalists have increasingly
shift, Mark Zuckerberg announced in Soon-Shiong also blocked the editorial stepped in to fill in gaps, including in
January that Meta would end its paid board’s endorsement of Democratic areas classified as news deserts. The
partnerships with independent fact- candidate Kamala Harris, leading the University of Vermont’s Community
checkers in the US – accusing them of editorials editor, Mariel Garza, and two News Service offers local outlets
ideological bias and censorship – and editorial board members to resign. student-reported stories, supervised by a
shift to a crowdsourced ‘community professional editor, which operates in
notes’ system like the one used on Elon In a March 2025 controversy dubbed addition to more than 120 programmes
Musk’s X. TikTok unveiled its own version, ‘Signalgate’, Trump administration around the country.
called Footnotes, in April, but continues officials used an unsecured Signal chat to
discuss an imminent bombing camaign in Lucas Graves
to work with US fact-checkers as well. University of Wisconsin-Madison
Yemen – with an audience that
Meanwhile, Trump has railed against EU inadvertently included Atlantic magazine Joy Jenkins
platform rules even while keeping Google Editor Jeffrey Goldberg. In April, the New University of Missouri

94
https://thehill.com/media/5247488-trump-says-cbs-should-lose-license-after-60-minutes-segments-on-ukraine-greenland/
95
https://www.poynter.org/commentary/2024/abc-cbs-nbc-cnn-fox-msnbc-coverage-trump-assassination/
96
https://nypost.com/2025/04/15/media/cnns-mark-thompson-to-roll-out-digital-subscriptions-as-network-struggles/
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis LineNews
on bothReport
layers: 2025 | United States 119
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE Fox News 32
9 CNN online 23
6
CNN 6
28 Fox News online 5
22
TOP BRANDS
Local television news 8
27 Yahoo! News 8
18
% Weekly usage
ABC News 8
19 New York Times 7
16
Weekly use CBS News 9
19 Local television news sites online 5
14
TV, radio & print BBC News 7
16 BBC News online 5
13
3 days per week or more NBC/MSNBC News 6
16 USA Today online 6
12
TV, radio & print
New York Times 5
13 Washington Post online 5
10
Weekly use
Regional or local newspaper 7
12 Wall Street Journal online 5
10
online brands
USA Today 7
12 ABC News online 5
10
3 days per week or more
online brands Local radio news 5
10 NBC/MSNBC News online 4
10
New York Post 4
8 CBS News online 5
10

20%
Wall Street Journal 4
8 MSN News 4
8
Washington Post 4
8 New York Post online 4
7
pay for Al Jazeera 4
7 Other regional or local newspaper website 4
7
ONLINE NEWS NPR News (including local NPR stations) 3
7 Website of a national news magazine 4
7

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Right-leaning Fox News has gained audience in the last year as Donald Trump swept back to power, but CNN has not benefited as many
progressives pull back from the news. Social media consumption has also surged (+6pp) amid an intense political climate.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2013–25 Social media
News podcasts 15% 2013–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 7%
100% 100%

75% 76%
72% 71% 70%
54% 55%
50% 47% 50% 50%

27% 28% 29%

14% 16%
0% 0%
2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Overall trust remains at the lower end of our international survey, with most brands
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
seeing a dip in their trust scores in the last year. Among the brands included in our trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
survey, local TV news and local newspapers remain most trusted, along with the Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
BBC and long-established broadcast networks CBS and ABC. But trust levels for ABC News 47% 22% 30%
other brands are adversely affected by the highly polarised US market. BBC 52% 25% 22%
CBS News 48% 23% 30%
CNN 46% 18% 36%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 Fox News 43% 17% 40%
100% HuffPost 34% 34% 32%
Local television news 59% 23% 18%
NBC/MSNBC News 44% 23% 33%

30%
New York Times 47% 23% 30%
50%
NPR News 42% 28% 30%
32% 30% Regional or local newspaper 55% 26% 19%
OVERALL TRUST USA Today 44% 30% 26%
0%
=39/48 markets
Wall Street Journal 46% 29% 25%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Washington Post 42% 26% 32%
Yahoo! News 35% 34% 31%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
57
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 65.49 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

31%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 32% (+1) 64% 4 Instagram 16% (+2) 41%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 30% (+1) 63% 5 TikTok 12% (+3) 26%
via social, messaging,
3 X 23% (+8) 31% 6 WhatsApp 10% (+1) 26%
or email
120 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

ARGENTINA
Javier Milei’s presidency has significantly changed the media
landscape in Argentina, adding to the pressure on press freedom and
fragile business models. In a deeply polarised environment, where
media are either for or against the government, public interest in the
news is down, with audiences instead seeking out non-traditional
sources such as live online video. Population 46m
Internet penetration 89%

The government’s determination to cut it has led to even lower levels of main competitor, Olga, has 1.4 million
public spending, vividly illustrated by engagement. In 2017, 77% of people in subscribers. Other online news outlets
President Milei handing a chainsaw to Argentina reported being extremely or and broadcast radio have followed suit,
Elon Musk, has led to the closure of very interested in news; in 2025 it is just webcasting discussion programmes
public media and reductions in 42%. Fewer than one-third of respondents which are popular and less costly to
government advertising. The former indicate that they trust the media in produce than traditional news. Some of
news agency Télam, one of the oldest in general, and less than 40% trust the them foster community-building through
Latin America, closed down its news specific media outlets they engage with. in-person interactions with presenters
operation, but continued working as an and celebrities; some include live music
advertising agency for the government, There are many news outlets in Argentina performances. Their primary source of
and cut its workforce by more than half. but ownership is mostly concentrated funding remains advertising, both directly
Public radio and television, which have into a small number of conglomerates on their channels and via social media.
historically supported the government such as Grupo América and Grupo Clarín,
rather than acting as independent owner of the top-selling print newspaper The use of social media platforms for
sources, also faced layoffs at the end of in Argentina, Clarín. It reported an news has remained consistent this year,
2024 and lost their status as state average daily print circulation of just with six out of ten respondents saying
corporations, paving the way for 38,000 copies by the end of 2024, down they obtain information from these
potential privatisation. from 51,000 a year earlier.98 Ten years ago sources. Nearly four out of ten
it was selling a quarter of a million copies respondents use Facebook for news,
Budget cuts have also hit privately owned a day. The digital subscription base, while 35% turn to Instagram. WhatsApp,
media – overall advertising declined by however, has grown to 750,000 users, however, has declined as a source of
4% in 2024.97 While ad spending for while print still accounts for 53% of information, and the comparatively more
digital outlets remained steady, it fell by circulation revenue. Meanwhile, politicised platform X is now a news
28% for print, 15% for radio, and 9% for broadcast television viewership source for just 12% of respondents.
television, mirroring the audience’s continued to decline, with average ratings
migration to online media. of 17% across all stations in 2024, down Eugenia Mitchelstein and
from 18.4% the previous year. Pablo J. Boczkowski
Attacks by the president on journalists Center for the Study of Media and Society,
who criticise him have continued, with Online media have increasingly adopted Argentina (MESO)
him repeatedly vilifying and insulting subscriptions as a funding source, but
reporters, treating them as enemies. The only 11% of respondents reported paying
non-profit FOPEA (the Argentine for news online in 2025. The two leading
Journalism Forum) said almost a third of online news outlets in early 2025 were
attacks on journalists between April and Infobae, which was used weekly by 34%
July 2024 involved the president. of respondents, and the website and apps
Meanwhile the country dropped 26 of the cable news channel TN, visited by
places in the 2024 World Press Freedom 31%. Neither of these outlets has paid
Index, to 66th place. subscription options.

The Milei government continues to While traditional news outlets decline,

polarise news outlets, with some alternative sources are thriving. Online
supporting and others opposing, live video, blending news and
continuing a trend which was established entertainment, surged during the
during previous administrations, pandemic and continues to grow. For
particularly that of Cristina Fernández de instance, 8% of respondents cite Luzu TV
Kirchner. But the polarisation has not led as a news source; this channel has over 2
to an increase in interest in news – rather million subscribers on YouTube, while its

97
Argentine Chamber of Media Agencies 2024 report. https://agenciasdemedios.com.ar/caam-informa-la-inversion-publicitaria-del-1er-semestre-2024/
98
Grupo Clarín Financial Statement 2024. https://ir.grupoclarin.com/en/quarterly-results/
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Argentina
layers: 121
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE TN (Todo Noticias) 33
9 Infobae 34
14
Telefe News 9
28 TN online 10
31
TOP BRANDS
La Nación + (TV) 7
20 La Nación online 9
20
% Weekly usage
C5N 8
20 Clarín online 11
19
Weekly use Canal 13 News 8
18 A24 online 5
13
TV, radio & print A24 8
17 TV Pública online 6
12
3 days per week or more Regional or local newspaper 12
16 Regional or local newspaper online 6
10
TV, radio & print
La Nación (newspaper) 12
16 Página/12 6
10
Weekly use
Crónica TV 7
16 Crónica News online 5
9
online brands
Clarín 11
15 Minuto Uno 6
9
3 days per week or more
online brands América TV 6
12 Olé 3
8
TV Pública (public broadcaster) 7
12 Luzu TV 3
8

11%
Canal 9 News 115 Cadena 3 online 4
8
Canal 26 News 5
10 CNN.com 3
7
pay for Regional or local news TV channel 4
9 El Destape Web 3
7
ONLINE NEWS Radio Mitre 3
7 La Voz 3
7

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Traditional media consumption, such as television and print, has been declining for years in Argentina. Meanwhile, three-quarters of our
respondents access news online, with over half accessing via social media.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2017–25 Social media
News podcasts 4% 2017–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 5%
100% 100%
92%
81%
74% 76%
62% 67%
59% 62%
50% 53% 50% 51%
45%

17% 19%
14%
0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust in news at 32% remains low by international standards, linked to high levels
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
of political polarisation. Despite this, some media brands, such as Telefe, TN, La trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
Nación, and Infobae, have continued to be perceived as trustworthy for at least Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
half of the respondents. A24 47% 31% 23%
C5N 37% 24% 39%
Cadena 3 36% 38% 26%
Clarín 44% 27% 29%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2017–25 Cronista 34% 39% 27%
100% Infobae 52% 27% 21%
La Nación (newspaper) 52% 27% 21%
La Nación + (television) 52% 26% 22%

32%
Minuto Uno 35% 40% 25%
50%
Página/12 36% 33% 31%
39% 32%
Perfil 32% 38% 29%
OVERALL TRUST Regional or local newspaper 46% 35% 19%
0%
=35/48 markets Telefe News 57% 26% 17%
2017 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ TN (Todo Noticias) 55% 23% 22%
TV Pública News 39% 34% 28%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
87
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 56.14 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

34%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 38% (+1) 62% 4 WhatsApp 27% (-6) 75%
SHARE NEWS 2 Instagram 35% (+2) 61% 5 TikTok 17% (+2) 35%
via social, messaging,
3 YouTube 28% (-3) 65% 6 X 12% (+1) 18%
or email
122 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

BRAZIL
Free-to-air television’s decades-long dominance in the Brazilian
media market continues to be challenged by digital platforms, as
audiences consume more audio and video content from streaming
services. Meanwhile, artificial intelligence (AI) tools are being
incorporated slowly but steadily into the daily activities of major
media outlets. Population 218m
Internet penetration 84%

The use of AI in Brazilian newsrooms spans The tussle between Musk and Moraes people charged in connection with the
an increasingly wide range of applications, gained huge press attention – Moraes has alleged coup plot to overthrow the
including speeding up the translation of been vocal in defending social media government elected in 2022 will
agency articles, transforming written regulation in order to hold digital platforms doubtless remain in the headlines in
content into short videos, and producing accountable for falsehoods, but some legal the year ahead.
insights from vast amounts of experts are worried he might be going too
unstructured data. The newspaper O Globo, far. In August 2024, Judge Moraes ordered The leading newspapers Folha de S. Paulo
for example, published a series of stories the arrest of right-wing bloggers Allan dos and O Estado de S. Paulo are tackling
based on 600,000 speeches made in the Santos and Oswaldo Eustáquio on digitalisation by creating a wide array of
House of Representatives and the Senate accusations that both disseminated podcasts, with varying degrees of success.
between 2001 and 2024. Over 255 million falsehoods on social media in an attempt More recently, newspapers have been
words and expressions were evaluated to intimidate federal police authorities. investing in bi-weekly, and even daily,
during four months using AI tools. Some of Both are supporters of former president videocasts A survey conducted by the
the country’s leading media groups, Jair Bolsonaro; both have now left the Brazilian Association of Podcasters
including Grupo Estado and Grupo Globo, country. The Economist Intelligence Unit (ABPod) recently estimated the number
issued guidelines on using the technology, moved Brazil from 51st to 57th spot in its of podcast listeners at almost 32 million,
emphasising that editorial uses of Democracy Index 2024, suggesting that with video accounting for 42% of content
generative AI should always be under Moraes’s rulings could have a ‘chilling production.100
direct human supervision. effect on freedom of speech’. Meanwhile, news consumption through
The discussion about the potential impact In another episode that highlights television continued its downward
of artificial intelligence also reached the concern about the political impact of trajectory, after being challenged by
political arena. In December 2024, the social media in Brazil, an avalanche of social networks and the growing
Senate passed a bill regulating the digital misinformation forced the popularity of YouTube. Last year marked
development and use of AI in Brazil. The government in January to withdraw a new the death of legendary TV host and
legislative proposal, which foresees set of regulations aimed at combating tax media mogul Silvio Santos, aged 93.
copyright payment for content used to evasion. Misinformation shared on social Santos rose from humble origins to
train artificial intelligence models, is now networks sparked concerns that, with the become the owner of SBT, one of the
pending in the House of Representatives. new rules, instant money transfers would largest TV broadcasters in Brazil.
be taxed – an entirely false claim. A video Rodrigo Carro
After a failed attempt to regulate social posted by right-wing lawmaker Nikolas
media in 2023, the topic gained momentum Financial journalist and former Reuters
Ferreira slamming the regulation Institute Journalist Fellow
again last year when Brazil’s supreme court amassed more than 300 million views on
ordered a nationwide suspension of Elon Instagram. Ferreira has more than 17
Musk’s social network X. Judge Alexandre de million followers on the Meta platform.
Moraes banned it from operating after the
company defied court orders regarding the Investigations into an alleged military
removal of accounts blamed for coup attempt plotted by former
disinformation. X was unavailable for more President Bolsonaro and some of his top
than a month but resumed service in officials were an omnipresent theme in
October after the company met its legal legacy media throughout 2024. But the
obligations, including paying fines and subject lost ground in terms of media
blocking certain users.99 While it was offline, coverage following the inauguration of
Bluesky gained millions of users, at one Donald Trump, as the US president
point getting more than a million new users announced tariffs on Brazil and other
in just three days, but it is still no match for X countries. However, the outcome of legal
in terms of popularity. proceedings against Bolsonaro and 33

99
https://www.reuters.com/technology/brazil-attorney-general-backs-reinstating-social-medial-platform-x-2024-10-08/
100
https://abpod.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/PodPesquisa_2024_2025FINAL-1.pdf
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line on News Report 2025 | Brazil
both layers: 123
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE TV Globo (Incl. Jornal Nacional) 41
11 Globo News online (incl. G1) 32
9
Record TV 9
31 UOL online 17
30
TOP BRANDS
TV SBT (incl. SBT Brasil) 10
23 Globo.com 10
27
% Weekly usage
O Globo 10
22 O Globo online 13
22
Weekly use GloboNews (24 hour TV News) 9
18 Record News online (incl. R7.com) 7
19
TV, radio & print TV Band (incl. Jornal da Band) 8
17 CNN Brasil online 7
14
3 days per week or more Regional or local newspaper 11
17 Metrópoles.com 7
13
TV, radio & print
CNN 6
14 Yahoo! News 7
12
Weekly use
BandNews TV (24 hour TV news) 7
13 Band News online 6
12
online brands
Folha de S. Paulo 6
10 Folha de S. Paulo online 7
12
3 days per week or more
online brands TV Jovem Pan News 3
8 Regional or local newspaper online 6
11
O Estado de S. Paulo 5
8 Terra.com.br 6
10

17%
Free city paper 5
7 MSN News 4
9
Rede TV Notícias 4
7 Free city papers online 7
9
pay for TV Brasil 4
7 Jovem Pan News online 4
9
ONLINE NEWS Veja (news magazine) 5
7 BBC News online 4
8

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Consumption of both television news and especially print have declined significantly over the last decade. In a sign of things to come, AI
chatbots are used by 9% of Brazilians to get their news along with podcasts (10%).

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2013–25 Social media
News podcasts 10% 2013–25* 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 9%
100% 100%
90%
78% 81% 82%
75%

50% 54% 52%

50% 46% 50%
47%

23% 28%
10% 14%
0% 0%
2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots * 2018 figures for computer use were likely overstated due to an error in polling

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust in news (42%) seems to have settled into a ‘new normal’, with levels stabilising
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
over the past three years. This after trust fell by 20pp between 2015 and 2023, a trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
period characterised by growing political polarisation. The big TV news brands Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
tend to attract most trust with audiences followed by newspapers of record such as Band (incl. BandNews TV, Band.com.br) 59% 22% 18%
O Globo, O Estado de S.Paulo, and Folha de S.Paulo. Folha de S. Paulo 52% 22% 26%
Globo (incl. TV Globo, GloboNews, G1) 55% 16% 29%
Metrópoles.com 49% 28% 23%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 O Estado de S. Paulo 53% 24% 23%
100% O Globo (newspaper) 54% 19% 27%
Record (incl. RecordTV, Record News, R7) 62% 20% 18%
Rede TV 50% 28% 22%

42%
62%
Regional or local newspaper 59% 25% 16%
50%
42% SBT News 64% 21% 15%
Terra.com.br 48% 29% 23%
OVERALL TRUST UOL 54% 23% 23%
0%
20/48 markets Valor Econômico 50% 29% 21%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Veja 50% 25% 25%
Yahoo! News 46% 31% 23%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
63
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 63.8 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

33%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 YouTube 37% (-1) 64% 4 Facebook 28% (-1) 52%
SHARE NEWS 2 Instagram 37% (+1) 61% 5 TikTok 18% (+4) 33%
via social, messaging,
3 WhatsApp 36% (-2) 71% 6 X 9% (-) 16%
or email
124 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

CANADA
The unexpected chill in relations with the USA, after President
Trump’s calls for Canada to become the 51st state, helped Mark
Carney’s Liberal party to win the 2025 federal election in April,
also boosting ratings for news outlets such as CBC/Radio-Canada.
The continued absence of news on Meta platforms stands in
contrast to Google’s approach to news publishers, where funding Population 39m
is now starting to reach news outlets. Internet penetration 94%

News media are affected in different community publications and radio News consumption on free ad-supported
ways by the tensions and tariffs that are stations. The Province of Ontario television (FAST) is growing and Pluto TV,
dividing two long-time allies with directed its largest advertising divisions a FAST distributor, added CBC and
strongly intertwined economies. to spend at least 25% of their ad budgets Radio-Canada news channels, in addition
Newsprint, for example, is largely a with local publishers. Uvagut TV, a to international news channels, to its
Canadian export to the south; ink is a US channel with programming in the offerings. However, Global News, which
export to the north. But the situation has Inuktitut language, operated by a operates mainly as a television network,
also led to heightened concerns about non-profit, will be added to basic cable cut 35 jobs in Alberta, British Columbia,
the quality of information spilling over packages. A partnership with CBC will and Ontario.
from widely used American media, provide news to the channel which
especially in a general election season. A joint lawsuit was launched against
previously was only available on the
An inquiry on foreign interference in OpenAI by the country’s biggest news
public broadcaster’s platforms. News
Canadian elections concluded that groups, including Torstar, Postmedia,
magazine The Walrus, supported by the
disinformation and misinformation, The Globe and Mail, the Canadian Press
environmentalist Chawkers Foundation,
including AI-enabled manipulated agency, and CBC. The suit is seeking
is opening a network of six bureaus
content, were the ‘single biggest risk’ punitive damages of US$14,300 per
across the country.
to democracy in the country. article they claim was used in the training
The big media players meanwhile of ChatGPT. ‘Journalism is in the public
Canadian users of Meta services such as continue to try to find ways to interest. OpenAI using other companies’
Facebook and Instagram remain without compensate for the decline of legacy journalism for their own commercial gain
professional news on the platforms, part business models, competition from US is not,’ the group said.
of the company’s response to the media, and news fatigue. Some are trying
country’s Online News Act (formerly Bill A local news publication at the border of
flexible pricing to attract new
C-18) after it refused to negotiate or pay Alberta and BC, the Crowsnest Pass
subscribers: the Torstar newspaper
news providers for their content. Google Herald, is just one of more than 1,000
chain, owner of the Toronto Star, became
did pay – CAN$100m (US$73m) a year local newspapers claiming up to
the first to launch a pay-as-you-go model
– and the resulting funds are now being CAN$8bn in damages from Google and
for online news content, under which a
distributed to a range of newspapers, Meta for lost revenue. Owner Lisa
single article costs 75 cents and daily
broadcasters, and digital outlets. The Sygutek, who has been characterised as
payments are capped at CAN$1.50 for
public broadcaster CBC will be using its an Erin Brockovich-style character
full access. The company said if someone
share of the money to hire journalists in because of her determination to seek
has full access just once a week, they will
regions with low news coverage. justice for fellow small media
be paying close to what an annual
companies, stands to receive CAN$3m
subscriber pays.101
Industry groups have called on if the action succeeds.
advertisers to withdraw ads from tech Postmedia, owners of the National Post
platforms and support struggling local and the Financial Post, teamed up with Colette Brin and Sébastien Charlton
media instead, even though the federal US content and marketing company Director and Coordinator, Centre d’études sur
government itself decided to reinstate its Contend to develop film, TV, and les médias
own advertising on Facebook and short-form video projects from Canadian
Instagram. The financial burdens creators and producers. It also acquired
imposed on platforms are among the the Saltwire network in Atlantic Canada
many criticisms levelled at Canada by the and sold three newspapers in Manitoba.
Trump administration. In Quebec, La Presse, whose financial
model places great importance on
News media continue to benefit from donations, reported a surplus of
public funding, including a new federal CAN$7.5m for 2024.
initiative for French minority-language

101
https://pressgazette.co.uk/paywalls/casual-payments-for-news/
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital News Report 2025 | Canada 125
Axis Line on both layers:
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90%TV,CMYK RADIO,
Black AND PRINT (ENGLISH SPEAKING)
90% CMYKONLINE
Black (ENGLISH SPEAKING)
AND ONLINE CTV News 28
9 CBC News online 23
8
CBC News (public broadcaster) 26
9 CTV News online 19
7
TOP BRANDS Global News 25
10 CNN online 16
6
% Weekly usage CNN 23
8 Yahoo! News 14
6
Local radio news 15
5 Global News online 14
7
Weekly use BBC News 15
5 BBC News online 13
5
TV, radio & print CityNews 15
8 MSN News 10
5
3 days per week or more CP24 14
3 Globe and Mail online 10
6
TV, radio & print Fox News 10
4 New York Times 9
5
Weekly use Toronto Star 10
5 CP24 online 9
3
online brands Globe and Mail 10
6 CityNews online 8
4
3 days per week or more New York Times 49 Local radio news online 4 8
online brands Axis Line on both layers: Axis Line on both layers:
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
TV, Black
90% CMYK RADIO, AND PRINT (FRENCH SPEAKING) 90% CMYKONLINE
Black (FRENCH SPEAKING)
TVA/LCN Nouvelles 50
7 TVA Nouvelles online 27
8
ICI Radio-Canada/ICI RDI (publicText:
broadcaster) 39
8 Numbers: Text: La Presse 26
8 Numbers:
Tisa Sans Pro Light Tisa Sans Pro Medium Tisa Sans ProRDI
Light Tisa Sans Pro Medium
Journal de Montréal ou Journal de Québec 21
11 ICI Radio-Canada/ICI online 24
7
6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking
90%Local
CMYKradio news
Black 13
5 White Journal de Montréal ou Québec
90% CMYK Black online 21
7 White
TV5 11
5 MSN News 11
6
Regional or local newspaper 10
8 L’actualité online 10
6
Noovo Info 9
5 Local radio news online 9
3

14% Le Devoir
CNN
8
4
8
3
Yahoo! News
Le Devoir online
9
6
7
pay for ONLINE NEWS 7
L’actualité 4 Le Monde online 7
7
Le Monde 4 TV5 online 6
English 16% | French 13% 6
CBC News 3 QUB Radio online 6

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2016–25 Social media
News podcasts 9% 2016–25* 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 6%
100% Text: 100% Numbers: Text: Numbers:
Tisa Sans Pro Light Tisa Sans Pro Medium Tisa Sans Pro Light Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking 6pt w/ -20 tracking
75% 90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White
71% 73%
64% 64%
53% 57%
50% 48% 50%
44%
36% 39%
34%
24%
14%
0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots * 2018 figures for computer use were likely overstated due to an error in polling

OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2016–25 PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

100% Only the brands listed were included in the survey. It should not be treated as a list of
the most or least trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
All English French
ENGLISH FRENCH
Brand Trust Neither Don’t Brand Trust Neither Don’t
55% Trust Trust
50% 45%
39% BBC News 60% 23% 17% CTV News 55% 34% 11%
37%
CBC News 62% 19% 19% Hebdomadaire local ou régional 60% 31% 10%
39% CityNews 57% 28% 16% ICI Radio-Canada/ICI RDI 71% 18% 11%
OVERALL TRUST CNN 53% 22% 24% Journal de Montréal ou Québec 59% 25% 16%
0% =23/48 markets
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 CP24 51% 32% 17% L’actualité 59% 30% 11%
Levels of trust in news overall haven’t changed much in the CTV News 63% 20% 16% La Presse 67% 23% 10%
past few years, but are still around 20pp below the 2018 results. Fox News 32% 20% 47% La Presse Canadienne 63% 27% 10%
Individual brands, and especially legacy brands from Canada,
Global News 61% 23% 15% Le Devoir 64% 26% 10%
continue to fare well, and even better among French-speakers;
Globe and Mail 56% 26% 18% Les coops de l'information
most are trusted by a majority of their users, with less than 20% (6 regional newspapers 55% 34% 11%
of mistrust. MSN News 43% 32% 25% in Quebec)
National Post 51% 30% 19% MSN Actualités/Microsoft Start 36% 36% 27%
New York Times 52% 28% 20% Narcity.com 26% 39% 35%
TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS
Regional or local Noovo Info 55% 30% 15%
62% 24% 13%
newspaper
Rank Brand For News For All Regional or local radio 60% 30% 10%
Toronto Star 49% 30% 21% TV5 Information 55% 33% 12%
Yahoo! News 37% 35% 28% TVA Nouvelles/LCN 66% 20% 15%
1 YouTube 28% (-1) 59%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following brands is? Please use the scale below,
2 Facebook 25% (-) 62% where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand were excluded. Whether respondents
consider a brand trustworthy is their subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.
3 Instagram 13% (-) 37%

4 X 11% (-) 18% WORLD PRESS FREEDOM

INDEX SCORE 2025
Score:
78.75 21 / 180
5 Facebook Messenger 10% (-1) 40%
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org
126 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

CHILE
Economic pressures have impacted the only state-owned broadcaster
in Chile and the two leading newspaper companies, in a market where
private media dominate. A decline in revenues and a legal battle with
Google were among the media industry’s challenges.

Population 19.7m
Internet penetration 95%

The economy has presented significant cancellation processes were as a private conversation, secretly recorded
challenges for news producers in 2024. straightforward as signing up. by one of the participants, was published
Chile has one public television station, by the outlet Ciper Chile. The recording
TVN, which doesn’t receive permanent Chilean media remains largely dependent
revealed the planning of a bribe, leading
state funding and is mostly funded by on advertising, but the share of revenues
to the arrest of a well-known lawyer.
advertising. Its status is a matter of has been challenged by the growth of big
Police authorities seized his phone, and
industry debate – the president of its tech. In an internal email to employees,
the WhatsApp conversations extracted
board this year appealed to Congress for the general manager of Copesa
from it unveiled a web of political favours
it to be transformed into a wholly acknowledged that declining circulation
involving various figures in the judicial,
state-funded outlet. However, its and advertising had led to delays in
law enforcement, and political spheres.
competitors raised concerns at his payments to staff. Journalists, designers,
These revelations resulted in
argument that TVN’s only available and photographers staged a work
investigative reports highlighting
alternatives were compromised by stoppage. As a response to their economic
WhatsApp as a source of journalistic and
vested commercial interests. The woes, Copesa took legal action against
judicial evidence. This, in turn, sparked a
stations in question, Mega, Canal 13, and Google, becoming the first Latin
broader debate on the boundaries
CHV, defended themselves, emphasising American media company to sue for
between private and public information.
their impartiality; audience trust figures allegedly abusing its near-monopoly
According to this year’s data, WhatsApp
do not indicate much of a difference power by controlling advertising and
is widely used in Chile, ranking as the
between the public and private options. selecting news content in search results.
most popular communication platform
Radio Cooperativa and the online
(70% for any purpose, 26% for news).
Mega was the most-watched free-to-air newspaper El Mostrador later also
television channel this year, the most- brought their own actions against Google. Chile hosted UNESCO’s World Press
visited online news source, and the only Freedom Day, focusing on the global
major player to turn a profit. One of its key The Clinic, a magazine known for its
environmental crisis, and this event saw
initiatives was launching two streaming satire, sharp humour, and politically
the government emphasising its agenda
channels: one providing 24-hour news charged editorial stance, has undergone
against misinformation and its
coverage and another for weather a significant transformation since being
commitment to protecting journalists.
information. These are available across acquired by businessman Jorge Ergas in
It also highlighted Chile’s improvement
multiple platforms, including YouTube and 2020. In the past year, the publication,
in the 2024 Reporters Without Borders
Mega’s own streaming service. Similarly, now wholly digital, introduced its new
ranking, moving from 83rd to 52nd.
Canal 13 introduced the first 24/7 news Executive Director, Pamela Castro, who
channel accessible on free-to-air is also Ergas’s wife. The magazine At the same time, the line between
television. CNN Chile meanwhile distanced itself from its traditionally entertainment and news has become
launched a radio and podcast initiative irreverent and opinionated political tone increasingly blurred. Morning shows,
that is available across platforms, in favour of a more general editorial style, which blend current affairs with lifestyle
including its own app and AM radio. while experimenting with new formats, topics, have been hiring journalists, mostly
including podcasts. Another publication from news departments. Cable and
It was also a difficult year for newspapers. with a prominent change was Diario streaming platforms have introduced talk
Chileans have proved reluctant to pay for Financiero, a business-focused shows discussing current events, featuring
online news subscriptions. The country’s newspaper, which launched a print and a mix of political figures, analysts, artists,
two largest newspapers, La Tercera digital Saturday edition, Señal DF, a first comedians, and provocateurs.
(owned by Copesa) and El Mercurio, faced in its 35-year history.
criticism from the National Consumer Francisco J. Fernández
Service (SERNAC) after complaints from Since late 2023 and throughout 2024, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
subscribers about difficulties in investigative journalism has been crucial Enrique Núñez-Mussa
cancelling their subscriptions. SERNAC in Chile’s public agenda in exposing a Michigan State University
urged both companies to ensure bribery and influence-peddling scandal
known as the ‘Audio Case’. It began when
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line on News Report 2025 | Chile
both layers: 127
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE Meganoticias (Mega) 36
10 Meganoticias (Mega) online 25
7
Chilevisión News (CHV) 10
35 Bío Bío Chile online 6
21
TOP BRANDS
Canal 13 News 10
31 La Tercera online 14
21
% Weekly usage
24 Horas (TVN) (public broadcaster) 11
29 24 Horas (TVN) online 8
20
Weekly use Bío Bío Chile 7
21 T13.cl 7
19
TV, radio & print Las Últimas Noticias 13
18 Chilevisión News (CHV) online 6
18
3 days per week or more CNN Chile 8
16 Emol.com 8
16
TV, radio & print
La Tercera 10
13 Lun.com 7
14
Weekly use
El Mercurio 8
12 El Mercurio online 10
14
online brands
Radio Cooperativa 4
9 Regional or local newspaper online 11
13
3 days per week or more
online brands Regional or local newspaper 7
9 Lacuarta.com 8
12
Free city newspaper 6
8 Elmostrador.cl 6
11

10%
Local radio news 3
7 Ciperchile.cl 5
10
City newspaper 4
7 Cooperativa.cl 5
10
pay for 3
Other local television news 6 City newspaper online 6
9
ONLINE NEWS Tele 13 Radio 4
6 Theclinic.cl 6
9

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

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There is a continued decline in news consumption across all sources, and especially since the pandemic, with a minor impact on digital
platforms and a significant drop in television consumption.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2017–25 Social media
News podcasts 7% 2017–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 4%
100% 100%
93%
80% 77%
76% 74%
70%
60%
53% 50% 51% 48%
50% 46%

27%
18%
14%
0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Overall trust (36%) remains low but has increased by 4pp this year. Many of the
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
top-ranked brands are often associated with broadcast, traditionally the most trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
trusted media for audiences. The radio station Bío-Bío, as well as the TV channel Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
CNN Chile, for example, are both exclusively dedicated to news and are not 24 Horas (TVN) 55% 25% 20%
affiliated with political, religious, or economic groups. Bío Bío Chile 65% 22% 13%
Chilevisión News (CHV) 55% 26% 19%
Ciperchile.cl 50% 30% 20%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2017–25 CNN Chile 61% 23% 16%
100% Cooperativa 60% 26% 14%
El Mercurio 52% 24% 24%
El Mostrador 47% 33% 20%

36%
Emol 45% 30% 24%
50% 47%
36% Free city newspaper 44% 37% 19%
La Tercera 50% 27% 23%
OVERALL TRUST LUN 40% 32% 27%
0%
=27/48 markets
Meganoticias (Mega) 54% 25% 21%
2017 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Regional or local newspaper 52% 33% 15%
Tele 13 (Canal 13) 54% 26% 20%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
69
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 62.25 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

37%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 40% (-3) 65% 4 WhatsApp 26% (-5) 70%
SHARE NEWS 2 Instagram 32% (-2) 58% 5 TikTok 23% (+4) 45%
via social, messaging,
3 YouTube 26% (-2) 62% 6 X 12% (+2) 19%
or email
128 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

COLOMBIA
Media ownership is highly concentrated in Colombia, with a handful
of groups controlling most major TV, radio, and print outlets. But
the growing popularity of international streaming platforms and
the widespread use of artificial intelligence are forcing media
organisations to make innovative bets.
Population 52m
Internet penetration 77%

Major changes have taken place this year much more comfortable when AI is used seems to be having a damaging effect on
at Canal 1 after the Spanish group Prisa as a tool under the primary supervision of people’s trust of the media, which has
struck a deal with the administrator of journalists or producers, for instance fallen to the lowest level (32%) since
this state-owned TV channel to become producing summaries or translations, Colombia joined the Digital News Report
its primary content provider. As a result, than when it produces information on survey. The adoption by online
the station, the third most-watched its own with little human intervention, influencers from both extreme left and
channel in Colombia, suffered layoffs and according to our survey. extreme right of a mocking tone, verging
a radical change in its programming. on hate speech, has become somewhat
Its historic CM& newscast, which had The national government changed its
normalised for political discourse.
been on air for 30 years under influential communication strategy with live
founder and director Yamid Amat, was broadcasts of meetings of the Council of Meanwhile, six out of ten Colombians
axed. Prisa began to broadcast seven Ministers, led by President Gustavo (59%) are concerned about falsehoods
television news bulletins during the day Petro. He argued that the state has the circulating on the internet, and most
with local content, but most of Canal 1’s right to interrupt normal TV believe that politicians and social media
schedule is now retransmitted radio programming with ‘relevant information influencers represent the greatest danger
programmes from Prisa-owned stations for the citizenship’, but a High Court order to true information. At the same time,
Caracol Radio and W Radio with fixed- later blocked any automatic interruption social media continue to be essential for
camera shots of talk show personalities. on the two main commercial channels, distributing, sharing, and consuming
RCN and Caracol TV. One of Petro’s news. Facebook is the platform through
The dominance of international intentions was to promote transparency which people consume the most news
streaming platforms such as Netflix and and it is part of a wider trend in the region (47%), despite the drop in its distribution
Disney+ has led traditional channels to for leaders to build direct communication of news since 2021, followed by
launch their own streaming enterprises with the public, bypassing traditional WhatsApp (35%), YouTube (34%), and
or to produce content for these global media intermediaries. The first Instagram (28%). However, the fastest
platforms. Grupo Valorem’s Caracol TV broadcast, however, did not go according growth in news consumption on social
launched a TV app, Ditu, with 12 free to plan, with the meeting becoming a networks is recorded by TikTok (27%),
channels including 24/7 news, heated on-air cabinet argument. Five which grew 5pp compared to last year.
entertainment, sports, and radio. It ministers resigned as a consequence.
joined RCN, the second largest private TV Víctor García Perdomo
and radio channel in the country, which Meanwhile tensions emerged at public Professor and Director of the Research
had launched its own Canal RCN app at broadcaster RTVC, including accusations Center for Digital Media & Society,
the start of 2025. This streams reality of workplace harassment as well as Universidad de La Sabana, Colombia
shows and sport coverage alongside its criticism that its programming was being
normal stations. RCN also signed an used as a propaganda platform for the
agreement with the streaming platform government. Holman Morris, a politician
Vix to offer exclusive content in from the left and former journalist known
Colombia. Caracol TV news still for his investigative reporting on
dominates the offline news media Colombia’s armed conflict, stepped away
consumption (43%). El Tiempo.com temporarily from his role as manager of
(26%) is again the online leader. the news division of RTVC to concentrate
on defending himself after he and his
The use of artificial intelligence amongst family received online threats.
news organisations has increased. It is
now being used to produce content, Media political polarisation seems to
engage audiences, monetise content, have increased across the board,
and build tools that facilitate reporting especially as the country gears up for a
and verification. The Colombian public is presidential election in May 2026. The
atmosphere of political confrontation
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Colombia
layers: 129
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE Noticias Caracol TV 43
8 El Tiempo online 26
12
Noticias RCN TV 8
24 Noticias Caracol TV online 6
23
TOP BRANDS
El Tiempo 14
24 Pulzo 10
18
% Weekly usage
Caracol Radio 8
18 El Espectador online 9
17
Weekly use CityTV 7
17 Semana online 7
16
TV, radio & print Q´Hubo 10
16 Noticias RCN TV online 5
14
3 days per week or more El Espectador 8
14 Caracol Radio online 5
13
TV, radio & print
Blu Radio 6
14 Las2Orillas 8
13
Weekly use
RCN Radio 7
14 Blu Radio online 5
12
online brands
Noticias Uno 5
13 CityTV online 5
12
3 days per week or more
online brands La FM 5
12 Infobae.com (Colombia) 6
12
CNN 6
11 Yahoo! News 7
11

14%
Regional or local newspaper 9
11 CNN.com 6
11
Semana 6
10 La Silla Vacía 6
11
pay for NTN24 5
10 Regional or local newspaper online 8
10
ONLINE NEWS Señal Colombia RTVC (public broadcaster) 4
9 RCN Radio online 5
10

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

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Broadcast news on radio and television remains a powerful source of news in Colombia, especially with older people, but it is increasingly
challenged by social media and video platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok with younger users.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS

TV
2021–25 Social media
News podcasts 6%
Print AI chatbots 6% Computer Smartphone
100%
87%
70%
76% 54% (-) 75% (-1)
58% 58%
50%
43%
Tablet

24% 19%
27% (-1)
0%
2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the below brands were included in the survey.
High levels of polarisation combined with government criticism of much of the
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
media may be contributing to further declines in trust in the news over the last few trusted brands as it is not exhaustive.
years. Noticias Uno, an independent television newscast produced by NTC Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
Televisión, and Señal Colombia, which carries news from public broadcaster RTVC, Caracol Radio 50% 21% 29%
remain the most trusted brands out of those surveyed. El Espectador 54% 23% 22%
El Tiempo 54% 22% 23%
La FM 50% 24% 26%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2021–25
Las2Orillas 42% 32% 26%
100%
Noticias Caracol TV 49% 20% 30%
Noticias RCN TV 47% 21% 32%

32%
Noticias Uno 62% 21% 17%
50% Pulzo 43% 31% 26%
40%
32% Q´Hubo 41% 30% 29%
OVERALL TRUST RCN Radio 46% 23% 31%

0%
=35/48 markets Regional newspapers 51% 28% 21%
2021 2025 Regional TV news 59% 24% 17%
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’
Semana 44% 23% 33%
Señal Colombia 60% 23% 17%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
115
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 49.8 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

38%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 47% (-1) 68% 4 Instagram 28% (-1) 54%
SHARE NEWS 2 WhatsApp 35% (-6) 73% 5 TikTok 27% (+5) 49%
via social, messaging,
3 YouTube 34% (-) 67% 6 X 13% (+1) 20%
or email
130 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

MEXICO
Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum came to power in June 2024
promising a change in the political climate but her large majority has
raised fears about a concentration of power. Meanwhile, journalists’
working conditions remain among the most precarious and
dangerous in the world.
Population 129m
Internet penetration 81%

The Mexican media landscape remains Claudia Sheinbaum, who is Mexico’s first paywall. Infobae Mexico, a local version
highly commercial and strongly focused female president, enjoys high public of the Argentinian digital news outlet, is
on a few big players. TelevisaUnivision approval – she is credited as being the growing in influence, while UnoTV news is
(merged in 2022) owns the most most-watched online news streamer in credited with innovating by delivering
important broadcast outlets and recently Mexico thanks to her popular daily press free news updates via SMS to millions.
reorganised its news division under the conferences which last for up to two Meanwhile the adoption of AI in Mexican
banner N+, part of a cross-platform hours. Though Sheinbaum has taken a media faces multiple barriers such as
strategy to reach younger and more more conciliatory approach to the media high implementation costs, lack of trust
digitally savvy audiences who than her predecessor Andrés Manuel among editors and journalists, and
increasingly consume news online and on López Obrador, she kept a section every limited technical training, but there is
mobile devices. At the same time the Wednesday dedicated to pointing out significant potential for both innovation
company has developed its streaming journalists who share so-called ‘fake and efficiency.103
platform ViX, a hybrid service with some news’. With a supermajority in Congress,
free channels and some subscription. The The range of content offered by widely
her administration has been able to
group has also strengthened 24-hour recognised journalists through podcasts
enact reforms which, among other
news coverage within the platform and has grown, for instance Así las cosas
things, have eliminated some
staged its first regional transmission for (That’s the Way it is) hosted by sometime
independent institutions including the
Donald Trump’s inauguration in January, war correspondent and television host
National Institute of Access to
using anchors both from Mexican TV Carlos Loret de Mola, although podcasts
Information (INAI), the Federal
(Denise Maerker and Enrique Acevedo) are not yet people’s primary means of
Telecommunications Institute (IFT),
and its US station Latino TV (Ilia accessing news. Loret de Mola is also
and the Federal Economic Competition
Calderón). Streaming and broadcast popular on YouTube, where he and other
Commission (COFECE). It has also
audiences were reported to be around 20 former legacy TV anchors and
granted the government significant
million. A month later, the company newspaper columnists are building
powers over the judiciary which has led
announced a round of layoffs as it personal audiences.
to opposition claims of a growing
continues its digital transformation. autocracy. A new Transparency Act has Another popular YouTuber, 22-year-old
led investigative journalists to fear for journalist, Manuel Pedrero, hosts an
The Organización Editorial Mexicana
their future access to public information, influential daily news commentary show
(OEM) owns 70 regional newspapers
a resource that has been vital in recent called Sin Máscaras (Without Masks). He
(along with 24 radio stations and 44
years for uncovering corruption. is known for his unfiltered and
websites). But El Universal, the oldest
newspaper in the country, continues to straightforward opinions though is also
Mexican journalists face widespread
be the most important, along with having openly pro-government and is widely
job insecurity and remain vulnerable to
the most visited online website. Its seen as receiving preferential treatment.
frequent attacks targeting their moral
business model is a hybrid, combining Another show, Sin Embargo, is the most
integrity and reputation. The NGO
print subscription with premium online successful on YouTube from a small
Article 19 has also recorded four murders
content (El Universal Plus) and digital non-legacy media outlet, with 2.25
since the new president came to office,
adverts. The Reforma newspaper also million subscribers. Its leading
the most recent being Kristian Uriel
operates a premium paywall alongside its journalists, Álvaro Delgado and
Martínez Zavala, the founder of news
print subscription. Alejandro Paez, have now become stars
website Silaoense MX, who was
of legacy media at Canal Once, the most
murdered in March in Guanajuato.102
Other national newspapers including El important public channel in the country.
Heraldo, Milenio, and Excelsior are Some international players have been
diversifying with digital editions and gaining market share. El País México has María Elena Gutiérrez Rentería
ventures in TV and radio. La Jornada, set up a regional newsroom in the Universidad Panamericana
supportive of the government, depends Mexican capital with some free content Tania Montalvo
almost entirely on public advertising. and some premium content behind a Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism

102
https://articulo19.org/periodistasasesinados/
103
https://doi.org/10.5209/emp.99504
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis LineDigital
on bothNews
layers:Report 2025 | Mexico 131
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE N+ (Televisa) 25
9 El Universal News online 19
9
TV Azteca News 8
25 UnoTV News online 9
19
TOP BRANDS
Imagen News 9
21 City newspaper online 7
15
% Weekly usage
El Universal 11
20 N+ (Televisa) online 5
15
Weekly use Milenio News 9
20 TV Azteca News online 6
15
TV, radio & print Regional or local newspaper 14
18 CNN.com 6
13
3 days per week or more N+ Foro 5
17 Imagen News online 6
13
TV, radio & print
CNN 7
15 El Heraldo de México online 7
12
Weekly use
Canal 11 News 6
12 N+ Foro online 5
12
online brands
El Sol de México 6
11 Regional or local newspaper online 8
12
3 days per week or more
online brands Reforma 6
11 Aristegui Noticias 5
11
Radio Fórmula News 5
11 Latinus 4
11

14%
El Heraldo de México 6
10 Reforma online 7
11
La Jornada 5
9 Radio Fórmula News online 5
10
pay for Excélsior 5
9 La Jornada online 5
9
ONLINE NEWS Canal 22 News (public broadcaster) 4
9 El Financiero online 5
9

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News consumption from print and television has become consistently less important over time for our online sample, with social media
widely used across age groups. Mexicans are heavy users of social media, with TikTok (+6pp) growing fastest for news.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2017–25 Social media
News podcasts 13% 2017–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 7%
100% 100%
91%
80% 77%
72% 70%
65% 63%
50% 51% 50% 49%
45%
39%
33%
24%
17%

0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s administration was characterised by
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
constant and harsh criticism of the news media. The current president has taken a trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
different approach, but this has not yet affected overall trust levels which remain Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
low at 36%. The international news brand CNN and the oldest print media in Aristegui Noticias 56% 24% 20%
Mexico, El Universal, are amongst those with the highest levels of trust. Canal 22 59% 26% 15%
CNN 66% 20% 14%
El Economista 56% 28% 17%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2017–25 El Financiero 57% 27% 17%
100% El Universal 63% 22% 16%
Imagen News 62% 22% 16%
Latinus 47% 27% 25%

36%
Milenio 62% 22% 16%
50% 49%
N+ (Televisa) 53% 23% 23%
36%
Radio Fórmula News 59% 26% 16%
OVERALL TRUST Reforma 57% 25% 18%
0%
=27/48 markets Regional or local newspaper 56% 27% 16%
2017 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ TV Azteca News 58% 21% 21%
UnoTV 57% 26% 17%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
124
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 45.55 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

40%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 52% (+2) 76% 4 TikTok 24% (+6) 50%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 35% (+1) 72% 5 Instagram 15% (+2) 44%
via social, messaging,
3 WhatsApp 28% (-) 75% 6 X 15% (+1) 23%
or email
132 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

PERU
While print and TV in Peru adjust to a sharp shift of advertising
towards digital content, journalists also have a raft of political and
legal challenges to face, not least an accusation that investigative
reporters are engaging in ‘image terrorism’.

Population 35m
Internet penetration 80%

The headwinds do not look good for technical, or financial support for actions attacking her lifestyle. Leaked audio
traditional media in Peru, with forecasts brought against the Peruvian state.105 from her former interior minister, Juan
that digital media will account for nearly Human-rights victims and journalists José Santivañez, captured him
two-thirds of advertising spend before seeking legal support against the instructing a member of an elite police
the decade is out. TV in particular is government are expected to be some of unit to ‘control’ Marco Sifuentes, founder
facing a halving of its ad revenues by the most impacted by this law. of La Encerrona. The most extreme
2029, according to IPG Mediabrands. example of the mounting tension and
Layoffs in legacy media organisations Additionally, lawmakers have introduced animosity toward the press came with
have intensified – the most notable case a so-called ‘gag law’ to increase prison the killing of Gastón Medina Sotomayor,
being Latina Television. A leading sentences for defamation and to alter the journalist and owner of Cadena Sur TV,
broadcaster since 1983, it has now legal standards for the right to who was based in Ica, south of Lima. He
cancelled its evening newscast and let rectification. According to the National was shot and killed outside his home in
prominent staff go. Association of Peruvian Journalists an attack reminiscent of tactics used to
(ANP), 30 to 35 journalists face legal silence the press in Mexico.
Digital video is a big winner, and digital proceedings each year.
native outlets are making the most of The ANP’s 2024 report lists government
preparing for what is going to be a Attacks have also come directly from officials at both national and local levels
turbulent year politically. Canal Ya is a President Boluarte and her ministers. as the main aggressors against journalists,
streaming channel on YouTube and other Two major scandals involving the including Lima Mayor Rafael López
platforms devoted to journalistic content president have intensified tensions. The Aliaga.107 Journalist Clara Elvira Ospina of
while La Roro Network, which started as first, dubbed ‘Rolexgate’, was uncovered Epicentro TV shared a video on X in which
an entertainment-based streamer aimed by digital outlet La Encerrona (The she replayed frequent slurs and insults
at ordinary Peruvians, has expanded its Lockdown) in early 2024. It revealed that she receives, suggesting the attacks are
programming to political analysis and President Boluarte had acquired at least both systematic and publicly funded.
debate. There’s going to be plenty to talk three high-end watches and luxury
about. The April 2026 polls will be for the jewellery, none of which were declared However, many politicians, including
presidency and a newly expanded in her official disclosures. Initially candidates, are sidestepping the media
Congress comprising 60 senators. But at denying the allegations, she later said altogether, especially encounters where
the same time attacks on journalists they were ‘loans’ from the governor of they could face scrutiny, instead opting
have escalated. the city of Ayacucho, and said she had to appear with influencers for light,
returned them. superficial interviews. The most striking
A March visit from the Inter American example was the visit by US YouTuber
Press Association (IAPA) reported that The second controversy emerged when IShowSpeed (Darren Jason Watkins Jr.),
freedom of expression and of the press in independent weekly political magazine who was briefly named ‘Mayor of Lima for
Peru is in steep decline. It documented a Hildebrandt en sus Trece (Hildebrandt Holds an Hour’ by López Aliaga – an apparent
marked increase in legal actions against his Ground) reported that the president attempt to leverage the influencer’s 38
journalists, threats from organised crime, had secretly left office for two weeks to million YouTube followers.
restrictions on access to public undergo cosmetic surgery, without
information, pro-government bias in notifying Congress, which she would have Lourdes M. Cueva Chacón
state media, and legislative proposals been required to do by the constitution. San Diego State University
aimed at curtailing press freedom.104 Boluarte claimed the procedures were
Among the most controversial moves are essential and that she remained conscious
new powers for the Peruvian Agency for and active throughout.106
International Cooperation (APCI) which In response to these investigations and
can now regulate and sanction NGOs others, the president has accused
that receive international funding, journalists of spreading ‘fake news’ and
especially when it is used for legal, engaging in ‘image terrorism’ by

104
https://www.sipiapa.org/notas/1216884-peru-la-sip-junto-otras-organizaciones-internacionales-y-nacionales-rechazan-ley-del-congreso-que-afecta-la-libertad-prensa
105
https://www.wola.org/es/2025/03/organizaciones-internacionales-repudian-nueva-ley-en-peru-que-limita-y-censura-actividades-de-organizaciones-de-sociedad-civil/
106
https://www.infobae.com/peru/2025/03/28/cirugias-firmas-falsas-y-amenazas-la-explosiva-confesion-de-patricia-muriano-sobre-dina-boluarte/
107
https://www.scribd.com/document/810307696/Informe-anual-Ataques-a-la-Libertad-de-Prensa-2024
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis Line onDigital News Report 2025 | Peru
both layers: 133
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE Latina News 45
16 RPP News online 24
9
América News 13
43 Latina News online 9
23
TOP BRANDS
ATV News 14
33 El Comercio online 12
22
% Weekly usage
RPP News (Radio Programas del Perú) 9
23 La República online 11
21
Weekly use Diario Trome 13
22 América News online 7
19
TV, radio & print TV Perú News 13
21 Perú21 online 9
16
3 days per week or more Diario El Comercio 14
21 Infobae.com 8
16
TV, radio & print
Panamericana TV News 9
20 ATV News online 6
15
Weekly use
Diario La República 11
18 Exitosa News online 7
14
online brands
Willax TV News 7
18 Trome online 7
12
3 days per week or more
online brands Exitosa (radio and TV) 9
18 TV Perú online 6
12
Canal N 8
16 CNN.com 5
11 Ojo Público: 8%​

18%
Diario Perú21 10
13 La Encerrona 4
10 Wayka.pe: 7%​
CNN 7
12 PBO 3
9 IDL Reporteros: 5%​
pay for Diario El Popular 7
10 Canal N online 4
9 Lamula.pe: 5%​
ONLINE NEWS Diario Correo 7
10 Gestión online 5
9 Epicentro.TV: 4%

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Traditional news sources such as TV and print continue to decline in weekly use, while social media news use (64%) is high by international
standards. Peruvians have especially embraced the short-form video network TikTok (33% for news) which is up 6pp this year.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS

TV
2021–25 Social media
News podcasts 13%
Print AI chatbots 6% Computer Smartphone
100%
85%
70%
81% 71% (+2) 78% (-1)
63% 64%
50% 51% Tablet
28% 24% 33% (+1)
0%
2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the below brands were included in the survey.
Trust in the news (40%) is up by 5pp this year, perhaps linked to journalists’ role
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
in bringing recent controversies to light. Some news brands with a long heritage, trusted brands as it is not exhaustive.
such as the largest broadcast network RPP Noticias and historic newspaper El Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
Peruano, are trusted by over 50% of our respondents, but many Peruvians see big América News 51% 24% 25%
media companies as not sufficiently independent from powerful business and Canal N 55% 24% 22%
political interests. El Comercio 57% 22% 21%
El Peruano 59% 24% 17%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2021–25
Exitosa 54% 24% 23%
100%
Gestión 53% 27% 20%
La República 53% 24% 23%

40%
Latina News 55% 23% 22%
50% Local newspaper, radio, or TV 48% 30% 22%
40% 40%
Ojo Público 38% 31% 31%
OVERALL TRUST Panamericana News 51% 26% 23%

0%
22/48 markets RPP News 63% 20% 17%
2021 2025
Trome 36% 25% 39%
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’
TV Perú News 53% 25% 23%
Willax TV 47% 22% 31%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
130
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 42.88 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

42%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 52% (-1) 75% 4 WhatsApp 29% (-2) 68%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 34% (-) 69% 5 Instagram 21% (-1) 51%
via social, messaging,
3 TikTok 33% (+6) 57% 6 X 10% (-) 17%
or email
 134

SECTION 3
 135

SECTION 3

Analysis by Country and Market

Asia-Pacific
ASIA-PACIFIC
3.34 Australia 136
3.35 Hong Kong 138
3.36 India 140
3.37 Indonesia 142
3.38 Japan 144
3.39 Malaysia 146
3.40 Philippines 148
3.41 Singapore 150
3.42 South Korea 152
3.43 Taiwan 154
3.44 Thailand 156
136 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

AUSTRALIA
The Australian government has been at the forefront of global efforts
to protect consumers from the harmful effects of social media – along
with a possible new levy on big tech to support news publishers.
A landslide second-term victory for Anthony Albanese’s Labor party
in May’s federal elections is likely to see a continuation of these
efforts along with further support for beleaguered regional media. Population 27m
Internet penetration 97%

Towards the end of 2024 the Australian the Minister for Communications argued Several media companies are hoping
government announced it would pass it was not in Australia’s best interests for technology can deliver efficiency gains.
legislation requiring that social media platforms to circumvent the code by In March 2025, News Corp announced
platforms remove false, misleading, or removing news.109 However, this new levy plans for a generative AI tool in its
deceptive content likely to cause serious is yet to materialise. Instead, news newsrooms. The company has been using
harm. This was proposed as part of a companies such as News Corp and the AI to produce local news stories since
suite of possible safeguards including Guardian have struck financial 2023, but the introduction of their own
truth in political advertising laws and agreements with generative AI in-house tool, NewsGPT, suggests a major
tighter regulation of AI and deep fakes.108 companies to pay for training their Large focus on AI as part of their journalistic
But the government withdrew the Language Models on their content. workflow. Meanwhile recent research
legislation at the eleventh hour after suggests that Australian audiences and
failing to secure the support needed to With Meta not renewing its funding
journalists are concerned that AI-
pass the Senate. The main concern agreements and Google reducing their
generated content may have the capacity
among detractors was that subjective deals, there are concerns the local print/
to mislead.110
definitions of serious harm could result in digital sector will continue to contract.
the law being misused for censorship. To address this, the government is The Australian market for streaming
advancing its $180m News Media services is oversaturated as Max (Warner
The government was successful, Assistance Program, with grants being Bros. Discovery) is set to join Paramount+,
however, in securing a minimum age of 16 directed towards multicultural, First Netflix, Stan, Disney+, and Amazon Prime
for social media platform users in Nations, suburban, and regional news Video among the constellation of
Australia. The Online Safety Amendment publishers. Separately, the public offerings available. With the market
(Social Media Minimum Age) Act 2024 broadcaster ABC indicated it would ‘not dominated by US companies, there is
will take effect in December 2025 and back away from’ its commitment to concern about the low amounts of local
requires platforms to take reasonable regional journalism. In addition to film and television available on streaming
steps to establish that users are not aged rebranding its local digital and social services. While commercial and pay-TV
under 16. Platforms would face media outlets, it is retaining the 60 services are required to meet local
significant financial penalties – up to regional journalists it originally hired content quotas, streaming services are
AU$50m – if they fail to meet these with Meta and Google funding. not. Although the government has
obligations. While the legislation discussed the possibility of introducing
requires platforms to implement some Following Meta’s announcement News quotas as recently as November 2024,
form of age assurance, it does not specify Corp made significant cuts to its national so far they are yet to act.
how that should occur. reporting team, Seven West Media
announced it would close 150 posts, Kieran McGuinness
Meta announced in March 2024 that it and Nine Entertainment followed suit News and Media Research Centre,
would not be entering into any new sacking 200 employees. Regional news University of Canberra
commercial agreements under the News outlets are also struggling, and TV and
Media Bargaining Code, casting doubt on radio companies have repositioned
whether the government can motivate themselves to take advantage of market
platforms to continue subsidising news gaps. Once a mainstay in regional
organisations. In December, the television, Southern Cross Austereo sold
government upped the ante, announcing its licences in Queensland, Victoria, and
it would charge digital platforms southern New South Wales to Network 10.
annually if they refused to enter into or It sold its remaining TV assets to
renew contracts with news companies. conservative news organisation Australian
Calculated on the basis of their Digital Holdings, which is rolling out an
Australian revenue, these fees could cost Australian arm of American right-wing
the platforms tens of millions of dollars. news outlet Newsmax.
Calling it the News Bargaining Incentive,

108
https://minister.infrastructure.gov.au/rowland/media-release/communications-legislation-amendment-combatting-misinformation-and-disinformation-bill-2024
109
https://minister.infrastructure.gov.au/rowland/media-release/albanese-government-establish-news-bargaining-incentive
110
https://figshare.com/articles/online_resource/Generative_AI_and_Journalism_Content_Journalistic_Perceptions_and_Audience_Experiences/28068008?file=52159934
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Australia
layers: 137
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE Channel 7 34
11 News.com.au 21
8
ABC News (TV & radio) (public broadcaster) 10
31 ABC News online 6
20
TOP BRANDS
Channel 9 11
31 Nine News online 6
15
% Weekly usage
Sky News 5
17 7News.com.au 6
15
Weekly use The Australian 4
13 Sky News online 4
12
TV, radio & print Channel TEN 6
13 BBC News online 5
11
3 days per week or more SBS TV (public broadcaster) 5
12 Guardian Australia online 4
11
TV, radio & print
Commercial FM radio news (e.g. Triple M, Nova) 5
12 The Australian online 4
11
Weekly use
BBC News 4
11 MailOnline 5
10
online brands
Daily Telegraph 5
10 CNN online 3
9
3 days per week or more
online brands CNN 3
10 Sydney Morning Herald online 4
9
Fox News 4
9 Herald Sun online 2
7
ABC TV News: 25%

22%
Herald Sun 4
9 New York Times 3
7
Sydney Morning Herald 4
8 ABC Radio News: 13% Daily Telegraph online 4
7
pay for Commercial AM radio news (e.g. 2GB, 2UE) 2
7 SBS TV News: 12% SBS News online 4
7
ONLINE NEWS Regional or local newspaper 5
7 SBS Radio News: 3% 3
Al Jazeera online 6

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90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White
Despite slight increases in print use, the long-term trend in Australia is towards social and online news on digital devices, with traditional
brands dominating the market.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2016–25 Social media
News podcasts 9% 2016–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 6%
100% 100%

78%
72% 69%
65% 60%
57% 54%
50% 52% 50% 51%
47%
38% 34%
27%
20%

0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Australia’s news media are not as polarised as those in the UK and US. Audience
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
levels of trust remain steady. The main public broadcasters ABC and SBS continue trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
to attract the most trust, though popular commercial television and national Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
newspapers are only slightly behind. ABC News 60% 17% 22%
Australian Financial Review 54% 30% 16%
BBC News 57% 24% 19%
Channel 7 News 55% 23% 22%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2016–25 Channel 9 News 55% 23% 23%
100% Daily Telegraph 44% 30% 26%
Guardian Australia 48% 31% 21%
Herald Sun 45% 30% 25%

43%
News.com.au 47% 28% 25%
50%
43% 43% Regional or local newspaper 58% 27% 15%
SBS News 59% 23% 18%
OVERALL TRUST Sky News 50% 22% 28%
0%
=17/48 markets Sydney Morning Herald 47% 30% 23%
2016 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ The Age 48% 31% 21%
The Australian 53% 27% 20%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
29
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 75.15 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

27%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 38% (+6) 71% 4 X 16% (+6) 21%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 29% (+3) 59% 5 TikTok 14% (+5) 27%
via social, messaging,
3 Instagram 19% (+3) 46% 6 WhatsApp 13% (+4) 36%
or email
138 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

HONG KONG
Media freedom in Hong Kong, already showing signs of significant
strain with the closure of independent news outlets and growing
self-censorship among journalists and commentators, faces further
challenges as a former editor is imprisoned for sedition. Meanwhile,
media companies look towards the Chinese mainland to increase
audiences and revenue. Population 7.5m
Internet penetration 96%

The downstream effects of the National legitimate role in scrutinising substantial restrictions on whether and
Security Law (2020), enacted to quell the government policy and actions, how Hong Kong media can enter the
2019 social protests in Hong Kong, journalism should not be prosecuted mainland market, TVB was able to
continue reverberating among the news under the guise of national security’.111 expand its presence in 2024 by signing
media and journalists in Hong Kong as The Hong Kong government made an formal partnerships with Tencent Video
failure to navigate the uncertain red lines immediate rebuttal to the statement, to co-produce TV dramas and with
in their reporting can potentially lead to reiterating its adherence to freedom of Alibaba’s online video platform, Youku,
their arrest. Several news outlets ceased the press under local laws and to distribute local content to the
operations soon after the enactment of international treaties.112 mainland. Whether ‘entering China’ is a
the law, a number of notable columnists feasible strategy to resolve Hong Kong
have ceased writing op-eds, and In another significant court ruling, the
media’s financial challenge more widely
newspapers such as Ming Pao added Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal by
remains to be seen. Meanwhile, digital
disclaimers to all their published the Communications Authority, Hong
outlet HK01 is gaining revenue by branding
commentaries. Some foreign Kong’s broadcasting regulator, against a
itself as a lifestyle platform combining
correspondents have also left the city. previous ruling ordering the Authority to
news reporting with e-commerce and
The Wall Street Journal moved its Asia revoke its warning in 2020 to the public
event ticketing services. However, financial
headquarters to Singapore, and the broadcaster RTHK following the
sustainability remains a significant issue
US-funded news service Radio Free Asia, broadcast of a controversial episode in a
for smaller-scale online outlets.
which has been operating in Hong Kong satirical show that allegedly denigrated
since 1996, cited the uncertain climate and insulted the police. The show RTHK made headlines in 2023 with the
for journalism for its decision to leave Headliner was a popular TV programme introduction of its AI presenter, ‘Aida’,
following the enactment of the that satirised public affairs and aired its which delivered daily summaries of the
Safeguarding National Security first episode in 1989. Following the Hong Kong weather report. In 2024, it
Ordinance (i.e. Article 23) in 2024. Once warning, RTHK ceased production of the established its ‘AI Lab’ to explore ways to
known to be a bastion of press freedom in show. A major point of contention was leverage AI technologies in its
the region and ranking 18th globally in whether RTHK violated regulations by programme production processes, such
the 2002 Press Freedom Index by not checking the veracity of ‘factual as using AI presenters for its sports and
Reporters Without Borders, Hong Kong is contents’, as the Authority claimed. health-related podcasts. These
now placed 140th in the 2025 rankings. However, the Court of Appeal ruled that initiatives indicate that RTHK is, at least
the requirement of accuracy does not publicly, at the forefront of AI
In the latest development, the former apply to satirical expression.113 Some development in the industry.
Editor-in-Chief of the now-defunct digital observers noted that the ruling
news outlet Stand News, Chung Pui- demonstrated Hong Kong’s judicial Michael Chan, Francis Lee, and
kuen, was sentenced to 21 months in independence and provided ‘belated Hsuan-Ting Chen
prison having been found guilty of justice’ for the programme, while some Chinese University of Hong Kong
overseeing the publishing of 11 articles sceptics opined that the court might rule
during 2020–21 that had ‘seditious against the government only in relatively
intention’. Nine of the 11 articles were minor cases.
op-eds critical of the local and Chinese
News media organisations in Hong Kong
government. The court verdict was based
are facing increasingly severe economic
on a colonial-era sedition law that had
difficulties due to declining local
not been used for over 50 years and
advertising revenue. By way of response
which the UK abolished in 2009. After the
TVB, Hong Kong’s largest local
verdict, a joint statement of concern was
broadcaster, significantly reduced its
released by the Media Freedom Coalition,
annual losses by more than half by
signed by 25 countries, pointing out that
generating significant revenue from
for ‘media workers to safely fulfil their
mainland China. While there are
111
https://mediafreedomcoalition.org/joint-statement/2024/stand-news-hong-kong/
112
https://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/202409/10/P2024091000556.htm
113
https://dcc.law/case_commentary/hong-kong-administrative-law-court-of-appeal-dismisses-the-communications-authoritys-appeal-against-rthks-satirical-programme-
headliner/
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis LineDigital
on bothNews
layers:Report 2025 | Hong Kong 139
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYK TV, RADIO, AND PRINT
Black ONLINE
90% CMYK Black
AND ONLINE TVB News 54
9 TVB News online 32
7
RTHK (public broadcaster) 10
23 Hk01.com 9
31
TOP BRANDS
NowTV News 8
20 Yahoo! News 8
27
% Weekly usage
Headline Daily 6
18 Oriental Daily News online 5
18
Weekly use Oriental Daily News 6
17 RTHK News online 7
17
TV, radio & print Commercial radio news 4
15 Now TV News online 7
15
3 days per week or more AM730 5
13 Headline Daily online 6
15
TV, radio & print
BBC News 4
12 Hong Kong Economic Times online 4
12
Weekly use
Hong Kong Economic Times 3
11 AM730 online 4
12
online brands
Sing Tao Daily 5
10 Commercial radio news online 3
11
3 days per week or more
online brands CNN 4
10 Sing Tao Daily online 5
10
Metro Radio 4
9 BBC News online 3
9

22%
i-CABLE News 3
8 In-media online 4
9
South China Morning Post 3
8 CNN online 3
8
pay for Hong Kong Commercial Daily 2
7 China Central Television (CCTV) online 3
8
ONLINE NEWS Ming Pao 4
7 South China Morning Post online 3
8

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

CHANGING MEDIA Tisa Sans Pro Light
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Between 2021 and 2025, Hong Kong citizens’ sources of news have not changed dramatically: 86% respondents said they obtained news online, followed
by TV, which remains slightly ahead of social media. Facebook and YouTube remain key access points for online news along with news websites.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2017–25 Social media
News podcasts 14% 2017–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 9%
100% 100%
84% 86%
83%
74%
65% 67% 68%
60% 61%
50% 48% 50% 45%
37%
26% 26%

0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Despite concerns over the chilling effect of national security laws, most news
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
brands remain trusted by at least half of our respondents. Public broadcaster RTHK trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
remains one of the most highly trusted brands, along with commercial NowTV Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
News, while the small number of digital-only news brands have slightly lower AM730 66% 23% 10%
scores, partly because they are less well known by the wider public. Bastillepost 53% 28% 19%
Commercial radio 69% 21% 10%
Dot Dot News 49% 32% 19%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2017–25 HK01 64% 23% 13%
100% i-CABLE News 67% 24% 10%
In-media 57% 29% 14%
Ming Pao 68% 21% 10%

52%
NOW TV News 71% 21% 8%
50% 52%
42% Oriental Daily News 64% 22% 14%
RTHK 71% 16% 12%
OVERALL TRUST Sing Tao Daily 66% 20% 13%
0% 10/48 markets The Collective 52% 34% 15%
2017 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ TVB News 67% 15% 17%
Yahoo! News 68% 24% 9%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
140
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 39.86 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

40%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 46% (+4) 72% 4 Instagram 20% (+1) 47%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 44% (-2) 74% 5 WeChat 14% (-1) 46%
via social, messaging,
3 WhatsApp 25% (-1) 72% 6 X 11% (+3) 20%
or email
140 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

INDIA
Press freedom in India remains a significant concern following the
re-election of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a historic third term.
Media ownership remains concentrated with a few wealthy businesses
that are largely supportive of the government, while independent
media and journalists critical of them are often subjected to online
harassment or legal challenges. Against this background, innovative Population 1,442m
collaborations are underway amongst digital news platforms. Internet penetration 56%

India’s fragmented yet diverse news space misleading information, by far the political powers116. There are also
was dominated by extensive political highest score across markets. concerns over increasing regulatory
coverage in an election year. Yet there was powers of government authorities
also space for a unique collaborative Over the years, our data for India shows a through several new legislations such as
effort by prominent and like-minded strong preference for smartphones to the Telecommunications Act, and the
digital news platforms. The Wire, Scroll.in, access news along with social media Digital Personal Data Protection Act.
NewsLaundry, Caravan, and The News platforms such as YouTube (55%),
Minute - known for their adversarial and WhatsApp (46%), Instagram (37%), and In February, the website of south
independent stance on critical issues – Facebook (36%) being predominantly India-based Tamil news outlet, Vikatan,
worked together on day-long coverage used for this purpose amongst our was blocked by the Central Government
and analyses of the general and assembly primarily English-speaking survey after it published a cartoon critical of the
election results. The programme, which sample. Veteran journalists like Ravish prime minister and his government in
was broadcast via YouTube, was free of Kumar from traditional newsrooms like handling the deportation of unauthorised
advertisements and driven by subscriber NDTV too have moved away and Indian migrants from the US by the Trump
or donation funding, filling a gap in leveraged video-based social media administration. In January, Mukesh
mainstream news coverage. These platforms to start their news channels Chandrakar, an independent regional
collaborations have recently expanded to where they have more freedom to journalist in Bastar district in the Indian
video podcasts discussing current news express their own views. Content state of Chhattisgarh was reportedly
developments, and co-operation on creators and young influencers, who murdered for exposing corruption in local
investigative projects – again run on focus on news through YouTube, are road contract projects. Small and
subscriber donations. popular among our respondents. independent investigative newsrooms
Influencers like Dhruv Rathee who also continue to face financial-cum-
In January, Meta’s announcement that it commands around 28 million subscribers regulatory challenges, such as The
will end its third-party fact-checking on YouTube were particularly popular Reporters’ Collective, whose non-profit
initiative in the US caused concern, during the general elections.115 status was cancelled by tax authorities
especially among small newsrooms and early this year.117 These instances continue
Despite this, legacy news brands in print, to raise concerns over larger problems of
independent organisations who partner
as well as commercial and public press freedom and journalists’ safety in
with it. While there has been no
broadcasters, still enjoy high levels of the country.118
confirmation that the Indian leg of the
viewership across our mainly English-
programme will be cancelled, fact-
speaking survey respondents –with many Meanwhile, in the highly polarised
checkers in India are unsure whether
of these such as NDTV, Times of India, and television news space, Mirror Now, a
‘Community Notes’, which may replace
Hindustan Times also performing well news channel in the Times Group, is said
fact-checks by IFCN-certified
online. Legacy regional language brands to shut down later this year, reportedly
organisations in the future, will carry
in print such as Dainik Bhaskar (18%) and due to financial losses. Times Now, also
the same credibility, rigour, and
its online platform (16%) also enjoy good part of the Times Group and a popular
standards in combating misinformation
readership among our respondents as do news channel, which enjoys good
on social media.114
digital-only news platforms in English viewership figures in our survey, may
Third-party fact-checking initiatives have (The Print, 14%) and bilingual languages absorb some of the journalists from the
helped Meta label and demote rampant (NewsClick, 11%). Mirror Now newsroom.
misinformation on its platforms, as well
as supporting newsrooms financially The RSF report on press freedom (2025) Anjana Krishnan
through the partnership. Meta owned notes that media pluralism is challenged Research Associate, Asian College of
WhatsApp was cited by more than half of across the world, especially in countries Journalism, Chennai
our Indian survey respondents (53%) as in Asia such as India due to ‘economic
the channel that carried the biggest pressures’ with increasing corporate
threat when it comes to false and ownership and their connections with

114
https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/indian-fact-checkers-reeling-from-impact-of-zuck-announcement-101736535526573.html
115
https://frontline.thehindu.com/interviews/interview-dhruv-rathee-no-matter-which-party-comes-to-power-i-will-keep-questioning-the-government/article68055654.ece
116
https://www.reporters-collective.in/blog/statement-by-the-reporters-collective
117
https://editorsguild.in/statements-issued/
118
https://rsf.org/en/classement/2025/asia-pacific
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis Line onDigital News Report 2025 | India
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE NDTV (24-hour TV news) 29
11 NDTV online 28
11
The Times of India 9
27 India.com 13
25
TOP BRANDS
BBC News 6
26 BBC News online 9
23
% Weekly usage
Hindustan Times 7
22 The Times of India online 7
21
Weekly use Republic TV 8
22 India Today online 7
19
TV, radio & print India Today 8
21 Hindustan Times online 7
19
3 days per week or more Times Now 9
20 Republic TV online 7
18
TV, radio & print
DD India (public broadcaster Doordarshan) 10
20 DD News online 8
17
Weekly use
The Hindu 8
19 Times Now News online 8
16
online brands
Dainik Bhaskar 5
18 Dainik Bhaskar online 5
16
3 days per week or more
online brands All India Radio (public broadcaster) 8
17 The Hindu online 6
15
CNN 8
16 CNN.com 6
14 Rediff News: 11%​
The Indian Express 6
14 The Print 8
14 Firstpost: 10%​
CNBC TV-18 7
14 The Indian Express online 6
13 The News Minute: 10%​
The Economic Times 5
11 NewsClick 6
11 The Quint: 10%​
Malayala Manorama 3
9 The Economic Times online 5
11 The Wire: 9%

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

METHODOLOGY NOTE Tisa Sans Pro Light
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These data are based on a survey of mainly English-speaking, online news users in India – a small subset of a larger, more diverse, media market. Findings
in this online poll are not nationally representative and will tend to under-represent the continued importance of traditional media such as TV and print.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* DEVICES FOR NEWS

TV
2021–25 Social media
Print Computer Smartphone
100%

82% 76% 57% (-4) 76% (-3)

63%
59%
50% 50% 46% Tablet
45%

47% (+3)
39%

0%
2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Overall trust in the news has remained largely stable over the last few years. When
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
it comes to brand trust, legacy print titles and public broadcasters tend to enjoy trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
higher levels of trust. However, brands that are either extremely critical or Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
extremely uncritical of those in positions of power, tend to have lower trust scores All India Radio 65% 15% 20%
in a polarised environment. Scores should not be seen as a measure of the quality or BBC News 65% 14% 21%
trustworthiness of the content itself. CNN 61% 18% 21%
DD India 64% 16% 19%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2021–25 Economic Times 64% 16% 20%
100% Hindustan Times 69% 14% 18%
India Today TV 64% 16% 20%
NDTV 62% 16% 21%

43%
Regional or local newspaper 62% 18% 21%
50%
43% Republic TV 57% 17% 26%
38%
Scroll.in 50% 25% 26%
OVERALL TRUST The Hindu 66% 15% 19%
0% =17/48 markets The Indian Express 66% 14% 19%
2021 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ The Times of India 69% 13% 17%
The Wire 52% 22% 26%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
151
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 32.96 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

44%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 YouTube 55% (+1) 71% 4 Facebook 36% (+1) 50%
SHARE NEWS 2 WhatsApp 46% (-2) 69% 5 Telegram 22% (+2) 38%
via social, messaging,
3 Instagram 37% (+4) 54% 6 X 16% (+3) 23%
or email
142 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

INDONESIA
The 2024 election of Prabowo Subianto as President, along with
the looming implementation of a new Criminal Code and proposed
revisions to the 2002 Broadcasting Bill, led to a fear of new
restrictions on investigative journalism and other forms of free
expression. Civil society groups also noted the president’s statements
about ‘foreign-funded media’, and expressed concern that this was Population 280m
another indication of illiberal populism and democratic backsliding. Internet penetration 69%

As Prabowo Subianto was sworn in as the keywords to artificial news presenters The past few years have witnessed other
president of the world’s third largest and AI-generated Muslim prayer readings. encroachments on digital expression in
democracy in October, the use of social Indonesia, including the 2008 Electronic
media as a source of news continued to In April 2023, TVOne launched TVOneAI, Information and Transactions Law (ITE),
exceed print and TV. Although the now available on multiple social media and Ministerial Regulation 5 (MR5),
February election gave a temporary platforms, which advertises itself as ‘the which grants the government authority
boost to legacy media, there was an first artificial intelligence-supported to regulate private electronic systems
overall decline of interest in all sources of media in Indonesia’. Liputan6 likewise operators (ESOs), Indonesian services
news, including both online and social uses AI for sports, fact-checking, and and platforms, and multinational
media. On the first anniversary of his global news. While some journalists and companies such as Facebook, Twitter,
election, Prabowo alleged that foreign- industry observers expressed concern Google, and TikTok.
funded media organisations were trying about the possible loss of jobs, others
to ‘divide’ the country.119 That same day, were more sanguine, noting that AI Social media sites such as WhatsApp,
protesters demanded that the presenters could not replace reporting YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram are
Indonesian Press Council take action from the field. extremely popular in Indonesia, and
against Tempo, accusing it of acting in the 57% of Indonesians report getting their
Legal protections for freedom of news from these platforms. TikTok in
interest of billionaire financier George expression continued to erode, leading to
Soros.120 Three weeks later a severed pig’s particular gained in popularity as a
concerns among journalists and civil source for news – jumping up 5pp to
head was sent to Francisca Christy society groups. Planned revisions to
Rosana, a co-host of Tempo’s popular 34%. Although the use of WhatsApp
Indonesia’s 2002 Broadcasting Bill declined somewhat (by 3pp) it
podcast programme, Bocor Alus Politik proposed stringent controls over digital
(Slow Leak in Politics).121 One of continued to dominate as the overall
journalism, including investigative social media platform both for news and
Indonesia’s most internationally reporting and content related to the
recognised media brands, its flagship for any purpose.
political interests of a digital platform’s
magazine Tempo was famously banned in owner. Other restrictions include the Although Indonesians are generally
1994. It returned to print in 1998 with the broadcasting of content that portrays unwilling to pay for news, there was some
fall of Soeharto and the start of the LGBTQ ‘behaviour’, or other ‘negative experimentation with new models.
Reform Era. behaviours or lifestyles that could Tempo, for example, has created a
Although there were no major closures of potentially be imitated by the public’. The partnership with provincial media such as
media outlets in 2024, Indonesian media bill has been criticised as contravening The Aceh Post where they both share
continued to suffer a loss of advertising rights enshrined in the 1999 Press Law, content and allow readers to subscribe to
revenue. As part of his populist platform, namely that the Indonesian press is ‘not both online publications for a single price.
the new president promised a school- subject’ to censorship or broadcasting
bans, and that the press has the right Janet Steele
based free lunch programme, which Professor of Media and Public Affairs and
required 306.7 trillion rupiah ($3.1bn) cuts to ‘seek, obtain, and disseminate ideas
and information’.122 International Affairs, George Washington
in the overall state budget. This had University
unanticipated effects on the health of Meanwhile, the new Criminal Code is less
news organisations, as government than one year away from being
advertising at both the national and implemented and will replace the
provincial level dried up. This reduction existing law, which is a carry-over from
led Indonesian media companies to the Dutch colonial period. The
experiment with new partnerships, Indonesian Press Council has noted that
e-payment models, and the use of the new law, which will come into effect
artificial intelligence, as media after a three-year waiting period, has 17
organisations started using AI for articles that have the capacity to
everything from headline-writing and threaten press freedom.

119
https://www.metrotvnews.com/play/NLMCJx88-presiden-prabowo-sebut-lsm-dan-media-yang-dibiayai-asing-akan-terkuak
120
This was a swipe at Media Development Investment Fund (MDIF), which invests in independent media throughout the region.
121
https://cpj.org/2025/03/severed-pig-head-sent-to-indonesian-news-outlet-as-president-attacks-foreign-funded-media/
122
https://www.dw.com/en/indonesia-broadcasting-bill-elicits-press-freedom-fears/a-69164651
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Indonesia
layers: 143
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE TVOne 39
11 Detik.com 46
18
Kompas 20
36 Kompas online 16
37
TOP BRANDS
Metro TV 12
34 TVOne News online 10
26
% Weekly usage
Kompas TV 9
31 Tribunnews online 13
26
Weekly use Liputan 6 (SCTV) 12
28 CNN Indonesia online 11
24
TV, radio & print TransTV 8
26 Metro TV News online 11
24
3 days per week or more CNN Indonesia 9
24 Liputan 6 (SCTV News online) 9
22
TV, radio & print
RCTI 9
23 Tempo.co 9
16
Weekly use
Indosiar 7
16 Kumparan.com 8
15
online brands
Media Indonesia 10
15 Seputar Indonesia (RCTI News online) 7
13
3 days per week or more
online brands Regional or local newspaper 10
14 Okezone 7
12
TVRI (public broadcaster) 7
14 Viva.co.id 7
12

18%
Tempo 5
11 Merdeka.com 7
11
Koran Sindo 5
8 Sindonews.com 7
11
pay for BBC News 4
8 Jawa Pos online 5
9
ONLINE NEWS Other news media from outside Indonesia 6
7 BBC News online 4
9

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

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90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White
Online and social media remain the most popular sources of news in Indonesia with our more urban sample, but TV and radio remain most
important for the millions of people who are not online.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS

TV
2021–25 Social media
News podcasts 15%
Print AI chatbots 9% Computer Smartphone
100%
89%
79% 49% (-4) 81% (-3)
64%
58% 57%
50%
44% Tablet

20%
34% (-1)
10%
0%
2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Overall trust in news remains stable along with trust in most of the individual
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
brands for which data exist. There was one key exception – Tempo – which lost 4pp, trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
possibly as the result of attacks by the president. Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
CNN Indonesia 61% 33% 6%
Detik.com 59% 34% 7%
Jawa Pos 50% 41% 8%
Kompas 62% 31% 7%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2021–25 Kumparan.com 47% 43% 10%
100% Local television news 52% 40% 7%
Merdeka.com 48% 44% 8%
RCTI 57% 35% 8%

36%
SCTV (Liputan6) 59% 35% 7%
50%
39% Sindonews.com 48% 43% 9%
36%
Suara.com 45% 45% 10%
OVERALL TRUST Tempo 53% 37% 10%
0%
=27/48 markets Tribunnews 53% 38% 9%
2021 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ TVOne 60% 31% 9%
TVRI 58% 35% 7%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
127
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 44.13 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

30%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 WhatsApp 43% (-3) 76% 4 TikTok 34% (+5) 51%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 41% (-) 67% 5 Instagram 31% (+2) 52%
via social, messaging,
3 Facebook 39% (+4) 59% 6 X 13% (+1) 20%
or email
144 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

JAPAN
Japan’s media landscape is rapidly changing. Daily newspapers,
that once distributed more than a copy per household, are in sharp
decline, while broadcasters are losing their audiences to YouTube and
other video networks. Traditional media are also struggling to find
sustainable business models as the shift to digital gathers pace.
Population 123m
Internet penetration 87%

Daily newspapers’ total circulation in 2024. In January 2025, TVer, a free resigned due to abuse allegations,
decreased from 53 million in 2004 to 26 catch-up (VOD) service operated by announced he was standing for
million in 2024 with most of that decline the main commercial broadcasters, re-election and unexpectedly found
in the last ten years. Many Japanese also announced that its monthly users support online from voices who accused
publishers were slow to adapt to digital, had reached a record high of 41.2 million, traditional media of unfairly bullying him.
partly to protect their profitable print a 17% increase from the same month of When ex-governor Saito won the race, a
businesses, but this means that online previous year.123 Broadcasters are looking media analyst described 2024 as the first
access is now largely controlled by to stay relevant through innovation and true example of an online election
aggregators such as Yahoo! News and by reducing costs. TV Tokyo announced campaign.125 After the Hyogo election, a
LINE News (see brand lists) which offer the launch of its first Free Ad-Supported survey showed that there was a
free news from multiple providers. A Streaming TV (FAST), and four Nippon TV correlation between a favourable
‘free news culture’, where advertising is affiliates announced a restructuring of impression of the ex-governor and low
seen as the main way to fund news, has their management structures in trust in the media.126 During the election,
made it hard for publishers to charge November 2024. On the other hand, the it was observed that reporters covering
readers directly for online news. public broadcaster, NHK, is projected to Motohiko Saito’s rally were confronted
be in the red for the third straight year and filmed by his supporters.
One notable exception has been the following cuts in the level of its receiving
economic daily, Nikkei, which reached fees in October 2023. Meanwhile, AI is gradually being
the milestone of a million digital paid integrated into publisher news services.
subscribers in 2024, even more if you The TV industry was rocked by an Yahoo! News has introduced an AI feature
include smaller publications owned by allegation of sexual assault by Masahiro which detects offensive comments and
the group. Nikkei achieved this target Nakai, a former member of a hugely asks users to reconsider before posting.
partly by leaning into corporate (B2B) popular boyband who fronted several It is up to the users whether to follow the
subscriptions and its digital paid Fuji TV shows. The network’s initial advice, but the company says offensive
readership is now close to its print response to avoid an open press comments have declined by 24% since
circulation of 1.3 million. By contrast, conference was criticised as a cover-up, the service was launched.127 Saga Shinbun,
the Asahi Shimbun’s digital subscription triggering investors and the public to a local newspaper, also experimented
numbers have remained stable for accuse the network of a lack of with publishing a page entirely
several years at 300,000, with its print transparency and having flaws in produced by artificial intelligence to
circulation still ten times larger. governance.124 As dozens of companies commemorate its 140th anniversary,
pulled their advertisements, the drawing a mixed reaction.
The largest daily newspaper, Yomiuri, president of Fuji TV resigned, promising
with a circulation of 5.7 million does not an independent investigation. However, Yasuomi Sawa
sell digital subscriptions separately but the scandal raised broader questions Journalist and Professor of Journalism,
only as part of a bundle with print. It has about the industry’s respect of women’s Waseda University
also started to target businesses, a rights. The response of the viewers is Reiko Saisho
long-held market of Nikkei, in reflected in the decline in brand trust NHK, Broadcasting Culture Research
collaboration with Dow Jones. The new score of all TV stations this year including Institute
platform Dow Jones Yomiuri Shimbun Pro Fuji TV (-13pp).
provides professionals with financial and
business news from the two publications Another challenge for traditional media
through its dashboard. relates to the increased role of social
media in elections, since a ban on
While terrestrial television remains the internet campaigning was lifted in 2013.
primary way of viewing in Japan, In November, a former governor of Hyogo
streaming services are growing, with prefecture, located to the west of Osaka,
Netflix surpassing 10 million subscribers Motohiko Saito, who had previously

123
https://tver.co.jp/news/20250210.html
124
https://www.daltoninvestments.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/FMH-Special-Independent-Committee-English-PffD-version.pdf
125
https://www.nippon.com/ja/in-depth/d01082/
126
https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASSDD1VSLSDDUCVL00ZM.html
127
https://www.lycorp.co.jp/ja/news/release/016951/
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line on News Report 2025 | Japan
both layers: 145
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE NHK news (public broadcaster) 42
9 Yahoo! News 55
6
Nippon TV (NTV) 13
39 LINE NEWS 5
17
TOP BRANDS
TV Asahi News 11
36 NHK News online 3
10
% Weekly usage
TBS News 12
34 Nippon TV News online 3
8
Weekly use Fuji TV News 10
30 TV Asahi News online 3
8
TV, radio & print TV Tokyo News 7
16 TBS News online 3
7
3 days per week or more Regional or local newspaper 3
13 3
Fuji TV News online 6
TV, radio & print
Commercial radio news 3
10 Yomiuri Shimbun online 5
Weekly use
Yomiuri Shimbun 2
10 Nikkei online 4
online brands
Asahi Shimbun 2
9 Asahi Shimbun Digital 4
3 days per week or more
online brands Nikkei 6 TV Tokyo News online 4
Mainichi Shimbun 3 Regional or local newspaper online 4

10%
Weekly Bunshun 3 Weekly Bunshun Digital 3
CNN 3 Abema TV 3
pay for BBC News 3 Mainichi online 3
ONLINE NEWS Sports newspaper 2 BBC News online 3

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

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90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White
Traditional news broadcasters remain critical sources of news in Japan offline, but most online access still comes though aggregators Yahoo!
News and Line News. Social media is used less often for news than in many other Asian countries

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2015–25 Social media
News podcasts 3% 2015–25* 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 5%
100% 100%

73% 78%
70% 70%
62%
50% 53%
50% 46% 50%

33%
21% 24%
19% 20%
13%
0% 0%
2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots * 2018 figures for computer use were likely overstated due to an error in polling

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
The rising influence of social media and a major scandal in traditional media seem
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
to have contributed to the drop in trust levels, especially among the younger group trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
– the very generation the media struggle to reach. While traditional media aim to Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
uphold impartiality and objectivity, political commentators and influencers Asahi Shimbun 41% 39% 20%
criticise them for holding back the truth, and maintain they are the ones providing Fuji TV News 36% 36% 29%
unbiased news. Local newspaper 47% 39% 13%
Mainichi Shimbun 40% 43% 17%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2015–25 NHK News (public broadcaster) 54% 31% 15%
100% Nikkei 48% 39% 13%
Nippon TV News 45% 38% 17%
Sankei Shimbun 39% 43% 18%

39%
TBS News 46% 37% 17%
50% 46%
39% TV Asahi News 45% 37% 18%
TV Tokyo News 45% 40% 15%
OVERALL TRUST Weekly Bunshun 25% 39% 35%
0%
=23/48 markets
Weekly Shincho 25% 46% 29%
2015 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Yahoo! News 43% 40% 17%
Yomiuri Shimbun 42% 41% 17%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
66
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 63.14 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

13%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 YouTube 23% (-5) 56% 4 Instagram 6% (+1) 27%
LINE BRAND ICON
CMYK

SHARE NEWS 2 Line 19% (-) 51% 5 TikTok 6% (+1) 18%

via social, messaging, C82 M0 Y83 K0

3 X 17% (-) 32% 6 Facebook 3% (-1) 11%

or email
146 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

MALAYSIA
Malaysia’s media market reflects its multiethnic society, its variety
of religious beliefs, and its rich tapestry of languages and cultures.
However, laws to ensure that media content will not ‘offend’
Malaysia’s diverse groups, especially the majority (65%) Malay-
Muslim community, are being used with growing frequency against
news outlets. Population 35m
Internet penetration 98%

Over the past year these legal controls October 2024, ‘We have diligently environment, top of which is the passing
have become more evident as action after worked to minimise job losses; however, of the Media Council Bill by both houses
action was taken against both online several reductions and the restructuring of the Malaysian Parliament in February
media and its users over postings deemed of certain functions are inevitable.’129 2025. The Media Council Act will allow
racially and religiously offensive. The the industry’s stakeholders ‘to set and
term ‘3Rs’ (race, religion, and royalty) is Elsewhere, media giant Astro Malaysia,
regulate standards and the professional
used in Malaysia as shorthand to refer to which was facing losses last year, swung
conduct of media practitioners and
sensitive topics which need to be treated back into the black with a net profit of
independent media practitioners’.131
delicately in the interests of national MYR46.94m at the end of January
harmony. But the term was frequently 2025.130 Numerous reasons have been For many decades, the Malaysian media
evoked over the past year to control given for this quick turnaround, the most industry was constantly constrained by
freedom of expression and the media, and compelling being the combination of the the state and dictated by repressive laws.
a ‘3Rs law’ has been mooted since. strength of new content, its ongoing The long-running regime then insisted on
attempts to listen to its audiences, and leading and ‘guiding’ any proposed Media
In addition, a new regulatory framework the reshaping of its offerings to match Council. This began to change with the
on internet messaging and social media audience needs. New programme election of a reformist government in
services came into effect on 1 January packages were introduced in late 2024, 2018 which agreed with industry and civil
2025 which imposes new licensing including Astro One. society proposals to set up a Media
requirements on these services. Service Council consisting of and led by media
providers are now subject to licensing if Social media remain an important professionals, academia, and civil
they have 8 million or more users. source of news with over two-thirds of society. This was novel. There is now
Licences will be valid for one year and Malaysians using them each week. some cautious optimism that the
companies must comply with the TikTok is the fastest growing network industry will be able to regulate itself
provisions of the Malaysian with four in ten (40%) Malaysians now through this Media Council, reducing
Communications and Multimedia Act saying they source the short-form video government interference and the
(CMA) (2000). There are arguably certain platform for news each week, one of the recourse to repressive media laws.
provisions in the CMA which are highest in our survey.
problematic, not meeting international Zaharom Nain
But at the same time, the network is seen Director, Allianz Centre for Governance,
human rights standards.128 as a major threat by the government Faculty of Business and Economics,
The Malaysian media industry itself has when it comes to mis- and Universiti Malaya
had mixed fortunes. Online platforms disinformation, along with Facebook.
increasingly dominate a shrinking news Despite these concerns, a fact-checking
media market while traditional outlets, culture has not been widely embraced.
especially print media, struggle There are two prominent fact-checking
economically and in trying to engage with portals, the government-run Sebenarnya.my
a younger, tech-savvy audience. Our data and the academia/media/civil society
on news sources show that between 2017 collaboration, JomCheck. The new
and 2025 print usage in Malaysia has culture of fact-checking is perhaps not
plunged from 45% to 18% of respondents. surprising in a society that for many
decades was under authoritarian
But even the oldest and the most governments and is now showing signs of
successful Malaysian online news portal, reverting to old, undemocratic practices.
Malaysiakini (43% weekly reach in our
survey), had to lay off staff as part of its There are some potentially positive
restructuring plan. As they announced in developments in the Malaysian media

128
Article 19 and Centre for Independent Journalism (2024), ‘Social Media Licensing in Malaysia: What do you Need to Know?’. https://www.article19.org/wp-content/
uploads/2024/10/Article-19-Social-Media-Regulation-v1.7.pdf
129
Malaysiakini (11 October 2024), ‘Announcement on Malaysiakini’s Restructuring Plan’. https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/722310
130
Malay Mail (11 December 2024), ‘Astro Returns to Black with Net Profit of RM46.94m in 3Q’. https://www.malaymail.com/news/money/2024/12/11/astro-returns-to-black-with-
net-profit-of-rm4694m-in-3q/159567
131
Tarrence Tan et al. (26 February 2025), ‘Parliament Passes Malaysian Media Council Bill’. https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2025/02/26/parliament-passes-malaysian-
media-council-bill
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Malaysia
layers: 147
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE TV3 50
12 Malaysiakini 43
18
Harian Metro 14
30 Astro Awani online 17
37
TOP BRANDS
Astro Awani (24-hour news) 10
27 Berita Harian online 9
26
% Weekly usage
Berita Harian 13
27 Harian Metro online 9
24
Weekly use Utusan Malaysia 11
21 Siakap Keli 9
23
TV, radio & print Sinar Harian 11
21 Sinar Harian online 9
21
3 days per week or more Radio Televisyen Malaysia (public broadcaster) 7
21 The Star online 7
18
TV, radio & print
TV9 News 7
19 Utusan Malaysia online 7
17
Weekly use
The Star 8
16 Bernama.com 9
16
online brands
8TV News 5
13 Free Malaysia Today 6
14
3 days per week or more
online brands NTV7 News 5
10 BBC News online 7
13
Al-Hijrah 4
10 MalaysiaNow 6
12

18%
CNN 4
10 Yahoo! News 5
11
New Straits Times 5
9 CNN.com 5
11
pay for BBC News 5
9 Malay Mail online 5
9
ONLINE NEWS Sin Chew Daily 3
8 NST online 4
8

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

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Television and print have both declined substantially since 2017 as news sources. Online and social media are well established as the most
widely used sources.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2017–25 Social media
News podcasts 9% 2017–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 9%
100% 100%
86% 82% 81%
67% 66% 65%
57% 55%
50% 45% 50% 45%
39%
34%
18% 18%

0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust in the news increased significantly in 2021, possibly due to greater dependence
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
on media reports during the pandemic, and remained largely stable ever since. trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
Broadcast brands tend to have higher levels of trust, with many politically aligned Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
national-language and vernacular newspapers often having lower public trust scores. Astro Awani 66% 24% 10%
Berita Harian 62% 26% 12%
Bernama.com 59% 29% 12%
Free Malaysia Today 52% 33% 15%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2017–25 Harian Metro 59% 28% 13%
100% Malaysiakini 59% 28% 12%
Radio Televisyen Malaysia 64% 25% 11%
Regional or local newspaper 59% 30% 12%

37%
Sin Chew Daily 45% 36% 18%
50%
37% Sinar Harian 60% 27% 12%
29% The Star 58% 30% 12%
OVERALL TRUST TV3 News 64% 24% 12%
0%
26/48 markets TV9 News 62% 27% 11%
2017 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Utusan Malaysia 58% 27% 15%
Yahoo! News 48% 36% 16%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
88
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 56.09 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

38%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 47% (+4) 65% 4 YouTube 38% (-) 67%
SHARE NEWS 2 WhatsApp 42% (-) 73% 5 Instagram 24% (+3) 46%
via social, messaging,
3 TikTok 40% (+9) 60% 6 Telegram 19% (+3) 40%
or email
148 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

PHILIPPINES
Disinformation and harmful content surged in the Philippines
over the past year – fuelled by the widening political rift between
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte. The
fallout peaked with Duterte’s impeachment in February, followed
a month later by the arrest of her father, former president Rodrigo
Duterte, who faces charges of crimes against humanity before the Population 119m
International Criminal Court over his bloody war on drugs. Internet penetration 84%

As the political crisis deepened, online A legislative inquiry by a tri-committee of 105.9 FM, rebranded it as True FM, and
platforms were flooded with false or the House of Representatives also sought later launched the True TV channel.
misleading narratives and coordinated to regulate digital platforms and counter
attacks targeting rival camps, activists, online disinformation. Law enforcement GMA Network launched its first-ever news
and journalists. This information disorder, has begun cracking down on vloggers podcast, Philippines Today. According to
often amplified by political influencers accused of spreading falsehoods online. this year’s Digital News Report survey,
and partisan media, has continued to 12% of online Filipino adults now use
shape public perceptions of the press. YouTube disabled the accounts of podcasts to access news.
Sonshine Media Network International
While our survey data show that overall (SMNI) in February 2025, followed by ABS-CBN, still without a franchise,
trust in news improved after Rodrigo Facebook’s suspension in March, both announced in early 2025 the sale of a
Duterte neared the end of his presidency in citing violations of community standards. substantial portion of its Quezon City
2022 and has remained steady since, trust The hyper-partisan outlet is owned by property. It also shut down its
in nearly all media brands covered in this Apollo Quiboloy, a Duterte ally arrested in international segment, TFC News on TV
report slid over the past year amid August 2024 on sexual misconduct Patrol, in January after trimming its
intensified political disinformation, at least charges. In December 2023, the domestic and North American workforce.
some of which is aimed at mainstream government had suspended SMNI’s Print media showed further signs of strain.
outlets for allegedly biased coverage. broadcast franchise following complaints The Philippine Daily Inquirer, the country’s
of red-tagging – labelling individuals as biggest newspaper, announced the
In response to disinformation some communist or terrorist – and the spread of
newsrooms stepped up verification efforts integration of its print and digital
false information. operations effective from 1st July, a
and launched deeper investigations into
influence operations. GMA Network, the Amid this growing push to confront restructuring move expected to result in
country’s largest media organisation, disinformation and AI risks, efforts to job losses for some in its print division.
launched Panata Kontra Fake News equip journalists with new tools also Months earlier, the Baguio Midland
(Covenant Against Fake News), a gained momentum. Newsrooms further Courier, Northern Luzon’s oldest
multiplatform campaign in partnership experimented with generative AI. Rappler newspaper, ceased operations, citing
with more than 50 newsrooms, academic launched Rai, an in-house chatbot that soaring costs and shrinking readership.
institutions, and the Commission on guides users to verified information and The paper’s closure marked a significant
Elections (Comelec). Five news election explainers. VERA Files deployed blow to local journalism.
organisations are now accredited by the VERA, an AI-assisted fact-checking bot, Despite the many disruptions – and
International Fact-Checking Network, and on Facebook Messenger after piloting a continuing physical, legal, and online
the pioneering multisectoral fact-checking tipline on Viber. The Philippine Center for attacks on journalists – one rare positive
coalition Tsek.ph was relaunched for the Investigative Journalism turned one of its emerged. According to the Committee to
May midterm elections. long-form reports into an AI-generated Protect Journalists, no Filipino journalist
animated video to reach broader audiences. was killed in the line of duty in 2024 – the
These efforts aligned with Comelec’s
initiatives to combat election-related The broadcast sector continued to first time this has occurred since
falsehoods and the misuse of generative restructure. NewsWatch Plus launched in democracy was restored in 1986, and its
AI by candidates. These included July on RPTV, filling the void left by CNN ranking in Reporters Without Borders’
partnerships with social media platforms Philippines with a mix of archived and World Press Freedom Index substantially
and poll watchdogs as well as updated digital-first content. In September, improved. But that milestone was
guidelines on campaign-related content. Bilyonaryo.com launched the Bilyonaryo shattered in April 2025 when veteran
Meta’s support remains in question after it News Channel on free and pay TV. journalist and publisher Juan Dayang was
announced plans to stop using third-party MediaQuest sold its radio assets – shot dead at his home.
fact-checkers on its platforms in the including the prized 92.3 FM frequency Yvonne T. Chua
United States, though its programme in – to Prime Media, a group linked to house University of the Philippines
the Philippines continues for now.132 speaker Martin Romualdez. It acquired

132
https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/topstories/nation/933602/what-s-next-after-meta-scraps-third-party-fact-checking/story/#goog_rewarded
 Axis Line on both layers: AxisDigital
Line onNews Report 2025 | Philippines 149
both layers:
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE GMA Network (24 Oras, Saksi, GTV) 10
51 GMA News online 52
10
ABS-CBN (TV Patrol, ANC, Kapamilya) 8
40 ABS-CBN News online 10
44
TOP BRANDS
Philippine Daily Inquirer 13
25 Philippine Daily Inquirer online 13
29
% Weekly usage
TV5 (Frontline Pilipinas, One PH, One News) 8
23 Rappler 12
23
Weekly use Manila Bulletin 12
21 TV5 News online 7
22
TV, radio & print The Philippine Star 9
18 The Philippine Star online 9
20
3 days per week or more Local radio news 5
15 Yahoo! News 10
19
TV, radio & print
Local television news 7
13 Manila Bulletin online 8
16
Weekly use
Balita 7
12 PEP.ph 7
14
online brands
Super Radyo DZBB (Super Balita) 5
11 MSN News 7
12
3 days per week or more
online brands DZRH News (Manila Broadcasting Co.) 4
10 Manila Times online 5
11
BBC News 4
9 Local radio news online 4
10

15%
TeleRadyo Serbisyo 4
9 BBC News online 4
10
Regional or local newspaper 5
8 Balita online 6
10
pay for Abante/Abante Tonight 4
8 Local television news sites online 4
10
ONLINE NEWS Free newspaper or alternative news weekly 5
8 DZRH News online 3
9

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

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The decline of TV and print has plateaued as Filipinos seek news on the worsening political polarisation. Social media, however, remain their
preferred news source.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2020–25 Social media
News podcasts 12% 2020–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 9%
100% 100%
85% 85% 82%
75%
68% 66%
66% 60%
50% 46% 50%
39% 35%
22%
13% 14%
0% 0%
2021 2023 2025 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
While overall trust in news has held steady since Duterte’s presidency ended in
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
2022, trust in most individual media brands declined amid an uptick in political trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
disinformation. It is important to note that some outlets critical of those in power Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
are often actively distrusted by supporters of the politicians in question and subject Abante/Abante Tonight 46% 38% 16%
to coordinated harassment. As always, public trust is not in itself a measure of the ABS-CBN 60% 24% 16%
quality or trustworthiness of the content. DZRH News 59% 31% 10%
GMA Network 67% 22% 11%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2020–25 Regional or local newspaper 55% 34% 10%
100% Manila Bulletin 62% 28% 10%
Philippine Daily Inquirer 63% 26% 11%
PTV 51% 34% 15%

38%
Radyo Pilipinas 54% 35% 11%
50%
38% Rappler 43% 30% 27%
27% SunStar 52% 37% 12%
OVERALL TRUST Super Radyo DZBB (Super Balita) 61% 31% 8%
0%
25/48 markets TeleRadyo 57% 33% 10%
2020 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ The Philippine Star 61% 29% 10%
TV5 61% 30% 10%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
116
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 49.57 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

37%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 65% (+4) 81% 4 Facebook Messenger 27% (+1) 60%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 50% (+5) 76% 5 Instagram 14% (+2) 36%
via social, messaging,
3 TikTok 29% (+6) 51% 6 X 11% (+2) 21%
or email
150 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

SINGAPORE
Singapore’s tight media regulations extend beyond traditional
outlets into digital and social media. In the run-up to an election,
this has further extended to target deepfakes. While mainstream
outlets continue to enjoy high levels of public trust, many are quietly
undergoing transformation amid shifting audience behaviour and
resource pressures. Population 6.1m
Internet penetration 94%

Months before the May 2025 election, the Singapore’s new deepfake law bans the (IMDA) also released an updated skills
city-state’s parliament introduced a law to online publication of content during an framework for media industry
ban the publication, sharing, or reposting election period that ‘realistically’ depicts a professionals, urging practitioners to
of deepfakes and digitally manipulated candidate saying or doing something that learn about generative AI and virtual
content of candidates. This adds to the they did not do, including content made by production technologies. In our survey,
intricate system of laws against online AI and by techniques such as dubbing and 7% of our survey respondents say they
falsehoods, including the Protection from splicing. It applies to favourable and have used AI chatbots for news.
Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act unfavourable content, but does not
(POFMA) and the Foreign Interference include animated characters, beauty Digital-native Mothership is the second
(Countermeasures) Act. It also comes as filters, or entertainment-like memes. most-used news site (46%), followed by
more Singaporeans turn to image and Failure to abide by take-down orders could the website of the English-language
video-based platforms like YouTube land social networks up to $1m in fines. Straits Times, the newspaper of record in
(+4pp), Instagram (+4pp), and TikTok Singapore operated by state-supported
(+3pp) for news. Channel NewsAsia (47%) is the most-used non-profit SPH Media Trust (SMT). It also
online news source in Singapore. CNA is publishes Lianhe Zaobao in Mandarin
POFMA gives ministers the right to order part of the state-owned Mediacorp, which (8%), Malay-language Berita Harian (4%),
the publication of ‘corrections’ to online operates most television and radio and Tamil-language Tamil Murasu (1%).
content that they consider to be stations in Singapore. Its portfolio includes The fourth most-used news site, Yahoo!
erroneous, or to prevent a ‘diminution of 24-hour news network CNA (used weekly News (used by 21%), laid off all its editorial
public confidence’ in the government. In by 33%), English-based Channel 5 (23%), and social media staff and moved towards
November 2024, correction notices were and Mandarin-based Channel 8 (23%). exclusively syndicating content from
issued to Meta and X after an activist, other outlets. Audiences who say they use
Kokila Annamalai, claimed executions Marking its 25th anniversary in March YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok for news
were carried out arbitrarily and without 2024, CNA expanded its offerings to the all grew slightly, while the percentage
regard for due process. The state rejected United States, Canada and the United who use WhatsApp and Facebook for
these claims, publishing its reasons on its Kingdom.134 This expansion positions it as news remain stable.
an international news channel presenting
fact-checking website Factually, and
ordered corrections to be made. Though
news from an Asian perspective. Back Matthew Chew and Edson Tandoc Jr.
home, though, Mediacorp closed TODAY, a Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and
Meta and X complied with the orders,
digital newspaper which was launched in Information, Nanyang Technological
Annamalai refused to do so and may face
2000 and quickly became the second most University, Singapore
jail as a result.
read in Singapore. In 2017, it had gone fully
In another case, Bloomberg, The Edge, digital and ceased its print edition but still
The Independent, and alternative news won praise for its reporting and video
site The Online Citizen were issued production. The company said this was a
correction directions for a Bloomberg strategic move to consolidate resources
article headlined ‘Singapore Mansion and cater to evolving media consumption
Deals are Increasingly Shrouded in habits. Its staff have been taken into the
Secrecy’ that involved two ministers. The CNA digital newsroom and will now
Edge issued an apology 133 while produce long-form digital content for the
Bloomberg stated in its correction notice site at weekends.
that it complied only under the threat of
sanctions, saying it ‘reserves its right to Meanwhile CNA has been investing in
appeal and challenge the correction semi-automated production processes
direction’, adding that it stood by its including AI-generated summaries of
reporting. The ministers concerned later news stories – known as FASTs – to appeal
filed defamation suits against Bloomberg to a mobile and social audience. The
and its reporter. Infocomm Media Development Authority

133
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/edge-apologise-shanmugam-tan-see-leng-pofma-bloomberg-gcb-good-class-bungalows-4824206
134
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/cna-mediacorp-expansion-united-states-united-kingdom-china-25th-anniversary-4205196
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Singapore
layers: 151
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE The Straits Times 33
12 Channel NewsAsia online 47
13

MediaCorp Channel NewsAsia 9

33 Mothership.sg 15
46
TOP BRANDS
MediaCorp Channel 8 News 8
23 Straits Times online 12
41
% Weekly usage
10
23 Yahoo! News 8
21
MediaCorp Channel 5 News
Weekly use CNN online 7
15
CNN 6
16
TV, radio & print STOMP 9
15
MediaCorp Radio News 4
12
3 days per week or more Mustsharenews.com 8
14
TV, radio & print BBC News 4
12
BBC News online 5
13
Weekly use Lianhe Zaobao 3
8
AsiaOne.com 5
10
online brands 3
7
The Business Times
The Online Citizen 6
10
3 days per week or more
3
MediaCorp Suria Berita 6
online brands All Singapore Stuff 5
9
3
Shin Min Daily 6 5
9
Bloomberg

16%
Berita Harian 4 The Independent 5
8
Other news media from outside Singapore 3 Zaobao online 3
8
pay for MediaCorp Tamil Seithi 2 The Business Times online 3
7
ONLINE NEWS Tamil Murasu 1 3
The New Paper online 6

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

CHANGING MEDIA Tisa Sans Pro Light
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Online and social media remain the most common ways of accessing news in Singapore, while both TV and print have declined significantly
over the last few years. Most survey participants do not pay for news.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2017–25 Social media
News podcasts 5% 2017–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 7%
100% 100%
85% 85% 84%
72%
61% 63%
57% 54%
50% 53% 50% 52%
43%
32%
18% 21%

0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust in the news remained stable (45%), with the Straits Times (75%), Channel
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
NewsAsia (74%), and Mediacorp’s Channel 5 (73%) being amongst the most trusted trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
news sources by audiences. Most legacy news brands have retained or improved their Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
brand trust scores this year, while alternative and independent outlets still rank lower, AsiaOne 58% 33% 9%
partly due to their limited track record and emphasis on viral news. BBC News 65% 27% 9%
CNN 65% 24% 10%
Lianhe Zaobao 62% 28% 10%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2017–25 MediaCorp Channel 5 News 73% 20% 7%
100% MediaCorp Channel 8 News 70% 23% 7%
MediaCorp Channel NewsAsia 74% 20% 6%
MediaCorp Radio News 68% 24% 7%

45%
Mothership.sg 54% 32% 14%
50% 45%
42% mustsharenews.com 40% 41% 19%
Shin Min Daily 55% 33% 12%
OVERALL TRUST The New Paper 58% 30% 11%
0%
=15/48 markets
The Online Citizen 38% 41% 21%
2017 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ The Straits Times 75% 18% 8%
Yahoo! News 52% 36% 12%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
123
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 45.78 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

31%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 WhatsApp 33% (-1) 79% 4 Instagram 24% (+4) 54%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 32% (+4) 72% 5 TikTok 18% (+3) 37%
via social, messaging,
3 Facebook 31% (-1) 58% 6 Telegram 17% (+2) 42%
or email
152 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

SOUTH KOREA
News consumption has been steadily declining across all age groups
for several years, more recently with a noticeable drop in news access
through online portals in particular. The ongoing political upheaval
might represent an opportunity of sorts for news brands, with trust
ratings for major media, broadcasters and publishers alike, showing
increases year on year. Population 52m
Internet penetration 97%

The principal ongoing trend in South way, followed by KBS, TBS, and SBS shortcomings – unverified rescue figures,
Korea’s media landscape has been the Medianet. The restructuring wave, which collision broadcast footage without filters,
reduction in news consumption across all affected terrestrial broadcasters, general and fear-inducing videos. Some media
age groups.135 This trend seems to be programming channels, and cable outlets even published passenger lists,
affecting all sources of news, not just networks, was partly attributed to losses a major privacy breach. This experience
traditional outlets. The drop in the resulting from inadequate financial suggests that the guidelines have not been
prominence of news through portals like management, but the underlying cause fully internalised by field reporters and
Naver, which have for a long time played a was the shift in media environment, led by newsroom editors. However, some
central role in the distribution and the rise of YouTube and OTT platforms. improvements emerged. Broadcast
consumption of news in South Korea, Broadcast advertising revenue fell sharply associations issued guidelines swiftly, while
suggests that media organisations may by almost 20% year-on-year,136 leading to civic groups like the Citizens’ Coalition for
need to reassess their digital strategies. sharp declines in income as younger Democratic Media strengthened their
YouTube is taking more attention, with audiences migrated to digital platforms. monitoring. News outlets also responded
50% of our survey sample saying they use The growth of global OTT services also led with quicker apologies.
the platform for news each week, but the to a spike in domestic content production
growing impact of creators and costs. These layoffs are also heightening In December 2024, President Yoon Suk
influencers has raised concerns about the concerns about falling news quality and Yeol’s declaration of martial law plunged
quality of news circulating online. journalistic standards. the country into chaos, leading to a rapid
spread of misinformation and rumours on
At the same time, South Korea’s media Investigative journalism is rapidly social media. In response, major news
industry is embracing artificial dwindling in South Korea. Major organisations strengthened their
intelligence, with news organisations newspapers, including Kukmin Ilbo, Chosun fact-checking efforts, emerging as crucial
investing in AI-driven tools for automated Ilbo, and Segye Ilbo, have disbanded their sources of reliable information. While
reporting, content summarisation, investigative reporting teams. Broadcast misinformation circulating on social
recommendation algorithms, and networks are faring rather better, as KBS media and YouTube fuelled social unrest,
graphics production. For example, Chosun retains a four-person investigative team, traditional media brands made some
Ilbo has developed an in-house AI capable and YTN and MBC also operate similar progress in regaining public trust by
of editing and translating, while Hankook units, although SBS halved its ten- reinforcing fact-based reporting,
Ilbo launched its AI service ‘H.AI.’ Maeil member team.137 Some newsrooms are highlighting the role of objective and
Business Newspaper introduced adapting. Hankook Ilbo’s Excellence Lab accurate journalism in restoring
multilingual services which rely on AI fosters collaboration between credibility amid societal turmoil.
translation. On the policy front, as the investigative and news teams, while
government is pushing for an AI bill, Dong-A Ilbo’s Hero Squad rotates frontline Hyun-Woo Lee and Chang-Young Jeon
discussions are intensifying on how news reporters through digital teams. These Senior researchers at the Korea Press
outlets can both deploy AI responsibly and efforts aim to sustain investigative Foundation
also protect copyright. KBS, MBC, and journalism by broadening participation,
SBS have all sued local tech giant Naver strengthening digital skills, and
for allegedly using their news articles in embracing new storytelling methods.
generative AI training. This marks the first
The ‘Disaster Reporting Guidelines’,
time that Korean media have taken legal
established by the news industry after the
action against a big tech company over
Sewol ferry disaster in 2014, place clear
what they deem to be unauthorised use of
emphasis on the importance of accuracy,
news content.
prevention of secondary harm,
Since late 2023 many major media minimisation of social unrest, and the
companies have initiated sweeping layoffs protection of victims’ rights in news
(normally by way of voluntary redundancy reporting. However, the coverage of the
or early retirement), with JTBC leading the Jeju Air disaster exposed some remaining

135
Korea Press Foundation (2024), Media Consumer Report. https://www.kpf.or.kr/eng/user/engmain.do
136
KISDI, 2024 Broadcasting Industry Survey. https://www.kisdi.re.kr/eng/index.do
137
https://www.journalist.or.kr/m/m_article.html?no=56249
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital News
Axis Line Report
on both layers:2025 | South Korea 153
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% ONLINE
CMYK Black
AND ONLINE MBC News (public broadcaster) 42
10 Naver (news portal) 49
11
KBS News (public broadcaster) 11
35 MBC News online 6
23
TOP BRANDS
YTN 10
34 JTBC News online 6
18
% Weekly usage
JTBC News 10
32 Daum (news portal) 6
18
Weekly use SBS News 11
31 YTN online 6
18
TV, radio & print YonhapNews TV 8
28 KBS News online 5
16
3 days per week or more TV Chosun News 8
19 YonhapNews TV online 6
15
TV, radio & print
Channel A News 7
16 SBS News online 6
15
Weekly use
MBN News 7
16 Chosun Ilbo online 5
11
online brands
Chosun Ilbo 6
13 TV Chosun online 4
10
3 days per week or more
online brands Joongang Ilbo 6
10 Yonhap News online 5
10
Dong-A Ilbo 5
9 Joongang Ilbo online 5
9

19%
Maeil Business Newspaper 5
9 Hankyoreh online 5
9
Hankyoreh Shinmun 4
8 MBN (Maeil Broadcast Network) online 4
8
pay for Kyunghyang Shinmun 4
7 Channel A News online 4
8
ONLINE NEWS Korea Economic Daily 4
7 Maeil Business Newspaper online 5
8

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

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Online portals such as Naver still hold the largest share of news consumption overall, followed by broadcasters, social media, and print media.
TV news consumption in particular has been declining over time, faced with competition from online platforms like YouTube and TikTok.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2016–25 Social media
News podcasts 17% 2016–25* 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 7%
100% 100%
86%
80%
71% 76%
66%
61% 60% 60%
50% 50%
42%
32% 35%
28%
17%
12%
0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots * 2018 figures for computer use were likely overstated due to an error in polling

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
South Koreans’ trust in news overall remains unchanged at 31%. However, trust in
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
major media has increased by 3–6pp from a year earlier. Broadcasters such as MBC trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
and newspapers like Chosun Ilbo in particular have seen a rise in trust scores. Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
Broadcasters, led by MBC (61%), JTBC (59%), and YTN (55%), continue to enjoy higher Channel A News 43% 27% 29%
trust levels than newspapers. Chosun Ilbo 40% 23% 37%
Dong-A Ilbo 41% 26% 33%
Hankyoreh 45% 27% 29%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2016–25 Joongang Ilbo 40% 29% 31%
100% JTBC News 59% 22% 19%
KBS News 48% 23% 29%
Kyunghyang Shinmun 43% 31% 26%

31%
MBC News 61% 16% 22%
50%
MBN News 46% 28% 25%
31% Regional or local newspaper 39% 36% 25%
22%
OVERALL TRUST SBS News 54% 27% 19%
=37/48 markets
0% TV Chosun News 42% 23% 35%
2016 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ YonhapNews TV 52% 27% 20%
YTN 55% 26% 19%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
61
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 64.06 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

23%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 YouTube 50% (-1) 69% 4 TikTok 9% (+4) 23%
SHARE NEWS 2 Kakao / KakaoTalk 15% (-4) 57% 5 Facebook 6% (-3) 20%
via social, messaging,
3 Instagram 11% (-1) 35% 6 X 6% (+2) 12%
or email
154 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

TAIWAN
Competing views of Taiwan’s position relating to China – pro-
independence or pro-unification – ensure polarisation continues in
the island territory, and the media has been feeling the effects. Hit by
funding cuts and falling advertising revenue, the industry is waging
a battle for survival by trying to deepen audience engagement and
diversify business models. Population 23m
Internet penetration 85%

Taiwan’s competitive media have long KMT of bias and of distorting Taiwan’s financial news while addressing social
been dependent on advertising, though history. Things got more heated when the issues,139 and both recently launched
the rise of the tech platforms has seriously main TBS English Channel, TaiwanPlus, exclusive professional networks.
undermined this strategy. Total referred to Donald Trump as a ‘convicted CommonWealth’s Talent Forum brought
advertising revenues allocated to the felon’; the KMT said it was an insult to together business and government
mass media declined by more than a third Americans and would threaten relations stakeholders, while Business Weekly’s
(36%) between 2016 and 2023.138 To help with the US. Million CEO College – targeting top
plug the gap, some outlets started relying executives – charged a tuition fee of
on government advertising but in the past Seizing this moment, KMT lawmaker Chen US$31,000 (NT$1m) and recruited
year this source of funding has also been Yu-jen submitted a motion to cut the 130 CEOs.
affected by the complex politics of this entire budget – US$70m (NT$2.3bn) –
island territory. allocated by the Ministry of Culture to The Reporter, a non-profit independent
TBS. The move gained support in this media outlet, strengthened its community
The 2024 election was won by the polarised society, but it also galvanised a through impactful journalism and
pro-independence Democratic Progressive passionate defence of public broadcasting innovative strategies. Known for its
Party, making its candidate, William Lai, from cultural figures who warned the cuts investigations into human-rights areas
president. In the past year, however, the would devastate Taiwan’s creative such as sexual exploitation and human
opposition Kuomintang (KMT) and other industries and cultural identity. trafficking, it embraced multimedia
opposition parties, which are more storytelling, podcasts, short videos,
pro-unification, won a majority in the In an intense tug-of-war, the proposed comic-based journalism, and live events,
Legislative Yuan. They launched 100% funding cut was revised to a 1% and won numerous domestic and
unprecedented public spending cuts, reduction – US$700,000 (NT$23m) – with international awards. These helped secure
promising to ‘return the money to the a freeze on 25% of the budget. Meanwhile, annual donations of US$2.8m (NT$88m)
people’. One of the targets became TaiwanPlus suffered a 20% budget cut, from a variety of readers and wealthy
government advertising, officially termed approximately US$6.3m (NT$200m), with benefactors.140 Its Junior Reporter
‘media policy and public affairs promotion’. an additional 30% frozen. The venture, which encourages young people
The KMT denounced it as brainwashing broadcaster responded by attempting to to participate in the reporting process and
and called for its elimination. rebuild public trust, highlighting a 56% contribute to public debate, invited
growth in the audience for its news readers to explore international stories;
The Satellite Television Broadcast website and the launch of a new children’s it was honoured with a prestigious award
Association, which represents channel and youth platform, PTS XS. for broadening teenagers’ international
operators, launched a campaign against perspectives and fostering humanitarian
the cuts, warning that it would devastate As elsewhere, habits are changing.
An increasing number of Taiwanese are awareness.
the industry and media workers’
livelihoods. They also called for legislation turning to YouTube for news, with usage Lihyun Lin
similar to Australia’s bargaining code in rising from 38% in 2021 to 46% in 2025. National Taiwan University
order to mandate revenues moving from Most news channels now upload videos
tech platforms to news providers. The there, and some have begun adapting
industry pleas were partly successful – the long-form stories into short videos for
planned 100% cuts to government social platforms. Currently 35% of
advertising were reduced to 60%, but Taiwanese use Instagram, with 14%
came along with stricter regulations to relying on it for news, while 21% use
prevent favouritism and enhance TikTok, with 10% using it for news.
transparency in the allocation of budgets. Largely unaffected by political turmoil,
An even bigger battle faced the main CommonWealth and Business Weekly – two
public broadcaster, Taiwan Broadcasting of Taiwan’s most trusted media brands –
System (TBS), which was accused by the leveraged their credibility to generate new
income. Both are established as leaders in

138
Mass media advertising includes terrestrial TV, cable TV, radio, newspapers, and magazines.
139
CommonWealth’s ESG Impact Report 2024. https://www.cw.com.tw/esg-impact/2024/
140
The Reporter’s Impact Report 2024. https://www.twreporter.org/a/impact-and-annual-report
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis LineDigital
on bothNews
layers:Report 2025 | Taiwan 155
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE TVBS News 37
10 Yahoo! News 44
12
Eastern Broadcasting Company (EBC) News 11
32 ETtoday online 13
34
TOP BRANDS
Sanlih E-Television (SET) News 9
26 TVBS News online 8
26
% Weekly usage
Formosa TV News 9
23 Eastern Broadcasting Company News online 9
23
Weekly use Taiwan Television News 7
22 Sanlih E-Television News online 6
18
TV, radio & print China TV (CTV) News 8
20 Liberty Times online 7
17
3 days per week or more Chinese Television System (CTS) News 9
18 Taiwan Television News online 5
15
TV, radio & print
Liberty Times 7
17 Storm Media 9
15
Weekly use
ERA News 6
13 ChungTien News online 5
13
online brands
Public Television Service (PTS) News 6
13 United Daily News online 6
13
3 days per week or more
online brands United Daily News 6
12 China Times online 6
12
Next TV 5
12 Business Weekly online 6
10

14%
Unique Satellite TV News 5
11 China TV News online 4
10
China Times 5
10 Public Television Service News online 5
10
pay for Business Weekly 5
10 Chinese Television System News online 4
9
ONLINE NEWS Global News TV 4
8 cnYes.com 4
9

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

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Print media have become less significant over time, along with broadcast news. Social media as a news source have also declined
considerably, with Facebook seeing the sharpest drop.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2017–25 Social media
News podcasts 8% 2017–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print AI chatbots 6%
100% 100%
88% 89%
83%
77% 74%
65%
57% 56% 55%
50% 50% 48%
41% 42%

20%
14%
0% 0%
2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
In a polarised society, the opposition has accused public media of bias and unfairness,
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
potentially swaying some audience’s trust. However, cultural sectors, media reform trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
groups, and citizen-led campaigns have rallied in defence of PTS. The attack on PTS Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
peaked in January 2025, coinciding with our survey, possibly contributing to a 5pp Business Weekly 58% 32% 11%
decline in trust for their flagship channel. Overall, public trust in the news has fallen China TV (CTV) News 48% 35% 18%
by 3pp this year. Chinese Television System (CTS) News 46% 36% 19%
CommonWealth Magazine 58% 30% 12%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2017–25 Eastern Broadcasting Company News 49% 34% 17%
100% Economic Daily 56% 33% 11%
ETtoday.net 49% 33% 18%
Formosa TV News 40% 29% 31%

30%
Liberty Times 40% 31% 29%
50%
Public Television Service (PTS) 53% 31% 16%
31% 30% Sanlih E-Television (SET) News 38% 29% 33%
OVERALL TRUST Storm Media 39% 37% 24%
0%
=39/48 markets TTV News 48% 36% 16%
2017 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ TVBS News 54% 31% 15%
United Daily 48% 36% 16%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
24
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 77.04 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

30%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 YouTube 46% (-) 69% 4 Instagram 14% (+3) 35%
LINE BRAND ICON
CMYK

SHARE NEWS 2 Line 42% (+1) 67% 5 TikTok 10% (+2) 21%
via social, messaging, C82 M0 Y83 K0

3 Facebook 37% (-2) 62% 6 Threads 8% (+6) 17%

or email
156 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

THAILAND
Thailand’s media market is fragmenting as traditional outlets lose
ground to influencers, algorithm-driven content, and a broader digital
shift. Infotainment often overshadows public-interest reporting,
deepening divides and weakening press freedom in a landscape
shaped by platform economies and fragile regulation.
Population 72m
Internet penetration 90%

According to our Digital News Report Trust in the news media remains a and activism. While the National
survey 2025, more than eight in ten (88%) complex issue. Traditional television Broadcasting and Telecommunications
Thais now access news online each week. channels still largely command public Commission (NBTC) is pressing for greater
Smartphones have become the dominant confidence. Channel 7 HD (74%), Amarin regulation online, platform control
gateway, with digital engagement highest (73%), and Workpoint TV (72%) have remains mainly with foreign companies,
in urban areas. Among younger audiences relatively high trust scores, along with limiting effective oversight.
aged 18 to 34, almost two-thirds (63%) rely Thai PBS (72%) and Thai Rath (70%).
on social media as their primary source of However, signs of decline are evident. The return of the Shinawatra family to
news. Against this background news Nation TV – once a flagship outlet – has power has failed to deliver the economic
publishers are struggling to attract dropped to 62% trust, while regional and success many had hoped for, while the
attention with their traditional mix of local news outlets, which are amongst the dissolution of the youth-driven Move
online formats. Thailand is one of the few most challenged from a business Forward Party has dealt a severe blow
countries in our survey where people say perspective, are trusted by just 59%. to prospects for political reform.
they’d rather watch the news online (43%) Thailand’s news industry is facing a Political constraints still impact press
than read it (32%), with video primarily deepening crisis, with falling ad revenues, freedom in Thailand. Lèse-majesté laws
accessed via Facebook, YouTube, and shifting audiences to streaming, and continue to impose harsh penalties for
TikTok, with live streams and interactive downsizing digital TV networks. Reliance perceived royal disrespect, deterring
explainers gaining traction among younger on so-called ‘branded content’ has investigative reporting and reinforcing state
consumers. Use of TikTok for news (49%) blurred the line between journalism and narratives. Social media, once a platform
is growing fast (+10pp) across all marketing, weakening editorial for free expression, faces increasing
demographics. Despite limited competition independence. As digital TV licences near surveillance, with cyber laws used to
among internet service providers, low data expiry in 2029, some broadcasters may silence dissent.143 Notably, monarchy-
costs remain an important driver of focused news coverage has been diminished,
exit, further fuelling competition online.
multimedia news consumption. with some royal correspondents cut due to
At the same time, online news influencers
financial pressures.
are starting to rival traditional media,
AI-generated news is also expanding in reshaping journalistic roles.
Thailand, with Nation TV introducing virtual Thailand’s news media is at a crossroads
anchors. The first AI presenter, Natcha, as it looks to uphold journalistic integrity
Personalities like Kanchai Kamnerdploy, a
debuted in April 2024 during the News Alert while navigating digital disruption and
former actor, is recognised by six in ten
programme, followed shortly by Marisa of political constraints in a platform-
(60%) of our Thai respondents,142
Mono 29 in May 2024.141 The public reflecting a public shift towards dominated environment that seems to
broadcaster, Thai PBS, is moving forward infotainment. His daily TV talk show, favour personality-led commentary.
with plans to use AI to enhance its news Hone Krasae, which takes on controversial Without intervention, truth may become
service, highlighting the need to balance issues, is often extended via Facebook in short supply and journalistic scrutiny
cost, credibility, and appearance when and YouTube channels, where there are increasingly rare.
choosing between human presenters and AI fewer restrictions on what can be said. Professor Jantima Kheokao
avatars, with legal considerations. The Analytical journalists like Suthichai Yoon Asian Network for Public Opinion Research
willingness of publishers to experiment may (25%) and Jomquan Laopetch (20%) Dhanaraj Kheokao
partially explain why Thai audiences seem to retain recognition amongst educated Potsdam University, Germany
be more comfortable with different uses of audiences in Bangkok. Content creators
AI in news than most other countries in our such as Anuwat Noom (37%), Pond on
survey – specifically around features such as News (6%), and Tud Yoi Khao (5%) have
summarisation and automated translation. bypassed traditional editorial structures,
These initiatives offer potential cost savings offering concise content, emotionally
for an economically challenged industry but engaging yet often lacking in traditional
have sparked broader debates about job journalistic rigour –meanwhile, figures like
displacement, accuracy, and ethics. Sondhi Limthongkul (32%) blur journalism

141
https://mgronline.com/onlinesection/detail/9670000038774
142
Survey respondents were asked if they had seen a list of named individuals discussing or commenting on the news in the last week.
143
October 2024. https://www.article19.org/resources/thailand-silencing-dissent-and-the-fight-for-free-expression/
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Thailand
layers: 157
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE Thai Rath (incl. TV 32 & newspaper) 53
15 Thai Rath online 47
9
Channel 3 HD 9
36 Khaosod online 8
29
TOP BRANDS
Amarin TV HD 34 8
29 Thai PBS News online 9
24
% Weekly usage
Channel 7 HD 9
28 Workpoint Today 9
21
Weekly use Channel One 31 8
24 Yahoo! News 12
19
TV, radio & print Workpoint TV23 8
24 PPTV online 7
19
3 days per week or more Khaosod (newspaper) 10
21 MCOT News Network online 6
15
TV, radio & print
Channel 8 News 7
21 Matichon online 6
15
Weekly use
Thai PBS (public broadcaster) 6
17 The Reporter Thailand 9
15
online brands
Daily News (newspaper) 9
17 BBC News online 5
13
3 days per week or more
online brands PPTV 36 6
16 Nation online 5
12
Nation TV 22 4
12 Manager online 4
11
MCOT News Network (incl. Thai News Agency) 5
12 Bangkok Post online 4
10
Matichon (newspaper) 7
12 The Standard Thailand 4
9
Other regional or local FM radio 4
9 Siam Sport 4
9
True4U News 3
8 Voice 5
9

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Although television remains an important source of news for older Thais, our more educated, urban sample relies heavily on online and social
media sources for news. The most important social media platforms for news include Facebook, YouTube, Line, and TikTok.

SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* Also DEVICES FOR NEWS

TV
2021–25 Social media
News podcasts 11%
Print AI chatbots 6% Computer Smartphone
100%
91%
78%
88%
75%
53% (-12) 88% (-3)
50% 51% Tablet
44%

15%
51% (-5)
11%
0%
2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust in Thai media remains stable at 55%, which is relatively high by international
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
and regional standards. Despite this, younger audiences (47%) are considerably trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
more sceptical than older ones (58%). Trust in specific brands also remains Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
surprisingly strong (more than 60% in most cases), but this is largely shaped by Amarin 73% 20% 6%
legacy sentiment in what is still a strongly deferential society, rather than by the Bangkok Post 66% 28% 6%
quality of journalistic output. Channel 7 HD 74% 21% 5%
Daily News 66% 27% 7%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2021–25 Khaosod 65% 27% 8%
100% Krobkruakao 3 66% 25% 8%
Manager 60% 32% 8%
Matichon 69% 24% 7%

55%
55% MCOT News Network 69% 25% 6%
50% 50%
Nation 62% 27% 11%
PPTV 70% 24% 6%
OVERALL TRUST Regional or local newspaper 59% 33% 8%
0%
=5/48 markets
Thai PBS (public broadcaster) 72% 22% 6%
2021 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ Thai Rath 70% 22% 8%
Workpoint TV 72% 22% 6%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
85
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 56.72 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

37%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
LINE BRAND ICON
CMYK

1 Facebook 62% (-2) 77% 4 Line 41% (-1) 67%

SHARE NEWS
C82 M0 Y83 K0

2 YouTube 55% (-1) 79% 5 Facebook Messenger 22% (+2) 43%

via social, messaging,
3 TikTok 49% (+10) 67% 6 Instagram 18% (+1) 35%
or email
 158

SECTION 3
 159

SECTION 3

Analysis by Country and Market

Africa
AFRICA
3.44 Kenya 160
3.45 Morocco 162
3.46 Nigeria 164
3.47 South Africa 166
160 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

KENYA
Kenya’s media landscape is being shaped by a convergence of
economic discontent, shifting political dynamics, and the rise of
decentralised digital activism. Mass protests against the Finance Bill
in 2024 underscored the growing influence of social media in shaping
public discourse while exposing deep-seated fractures in trust
towards traditional media. Population 56m
Internet penetration 35%

Kenya witnessed a seismic moment in its attacked, or had their equipment advertising spending, shifting audience
political and media history in 2024. destroyed. The state’s response to digital preferences, and the proliferation of free
Demonstrations led by Gen Zs (those born activism has raised alarm over increasing online content. Media houses listed on the
between 1997 and 2012) shook the restrictions on free expression. Nairobi Securities Exchange, including
government and the media, particularly Standard Group and Nation Media Group,
due to the strategies employed by Beyond physical attacks, mainstream reported financial struggles, with Standard
protesters to communicate and organise media houses faced mounting pressure to Group journalists going months without
civic action. The movement largely align their coverage with the salaries. The Kenya Union of Journalists
shunned traditional media, opting instead government’s narrative. Political pressure threatened industrial action over unpaid
for social media platforms such as X, and economic repercussions followed, wages, further highlighting the precarious
TikTok, and WhatsApp, where it deployed with major advertisers such as Safaricom state of the industry. Newsroom downsizing
hashtags such as #OccupyParliament and withdrawing ad revenue from the Nation and budget cuts have led to reduced
#RejectFinanceBill2024 to mobilise Media Group following reports implicating investigative capacity, forcing journalists to
young people and others discontented the company in state surveillance of work under increasing constraints.
with government policies. protesters and breaches of user privacy.
Stories published by Nation had indicated The resilience of Kenya’s media industry is
Unlike previous protests led by political Safaricom’s involvement in controversial being tested on multiple fronts. The
figures or civil society organisations, these healthcare deals that were also the increasing use of social media, particularly
leaderless demonstrations relied on subject of protests.145 X, WhatsApp, and TikTok, as primary
decentralised digital strategies. Live- sources of information challenges the role
streamed videos on TikTok allowed the Meanwhile accusations of self- of traditional news outlets. Meanwhile,
demonstrators to bypass mainstream censorship, political bias, and corporate fact-checking organisations such as
media gatekeeping and censorship, influence led many Kenyans to turn to PesaCheck and Africa Check play a crucial
documenting police crackdowns in real alternative platforms such as Africa role in countering misinformation, as both
time, countering government narratives, Uncensored for independent reporting. state and non-state actors continue to flood
and drawing international attention. X Social media influencers were also digital spaces with disinformation, deepfake
Spaces facilitated instant live discussions, increasingly relied upon for news and videos, and manipulated narratives.
with President William Ruto himself analysis, as individuals concerned about
joining one in an attempt to placate the independence of mainstream media As Kenya heads towards the 2027 general
protesters. WhatsApp groups provided sought out alternative voices on elections, digital news consumption is
logistical coordination, including updates platforms like X, TikTok, and YouTube. expected to consolidate further. However,
on safe routes, legal aid, and first-aid concerns over misinformation, press
The impact of Gen Z’s media strategies is freedom, and media sustainability persist.
support. This digital mobilisation blurred evident in the declining consumption of
the lines between journalism and While digital platforms have democratised
broadcast, print, and online media. information and challenged traditional
activism, as ordinary citizens assumed the According to our study, which is based on a
role of real-time reporters. gatekeepers, the financial viability of
survey sample of mainly English-speaking, quality journalism remains in question.
The protests were met with significant online news users, the percentage of The future of Kenya’s media landscape will
pushback from the state. President Ruto people who said they watched Citizen TV in be defined by its ability to navigate these
described them as ‘treasonous events’ and the past week dropped from 76% to 68%, pressures while maintaining editorial
announced a crackdown on ‘orchestrators while Daily Nation saw a decline from 59% independence and public trust.
and abettors of violence’. Following his to 51%. This trend extended to online media
statement, journalists covering the as well, with market leader Tuko.co.ke also Catherine Gicheru
demonstrations faced increasing falling back. Director, Africa Women Journalism Project
harassment, both online and offline. In George Nyabuga
Beyond political pressures, economic
one of the most serious incidents, a Associate Dean and Associate Professor of
hardships have severely impacted Kenya’s
journalist was shot three times while Media and Journalism, Aga Khan
media industry. Legacy outlets face
reporting on protests on 16 July 2024.144 University’s Graduate School of Media and
declining revenues due to reduced
Several reporters were detained, Communications

144
See e.g. Mercy Koskei. https://nation.africa/kenya/counties/nakuru/nakuru-journalist-shot-by-police-nobody-can-convince-me-i-was-not-the-target--4695820
145
See e.g. Lilys Njeru. https://nation.africa/kenya/health/the-untold-toll-of-protests-on-healthcare-system-4667868
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line on both News
layers: Report 2025 | Kenya 161
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
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WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE Citizen TV 68
7 Tuko.co.ke 61
18
Daily Nation 27
51 Citizen TV online 9
61
TOP BRANDS
NTV 14
38 Daily Nation online 25
48
% Weekly usage
The Standard 21
33 Opera News 16
38
Weekly use KTN Home 13
31 Kenyans.co.ke 17
35
TV, radio & print Citizen Radio 13
29 The Standard online 17
33
3 days per week or more K-24 13
24 NTV online 10
28
TV, radio & print
KBC TV (public broadcaster) 12
23 KTN Home online 8
22
Weekly use
The Star 15
23 BBC News online 8
21
online brands
BBC News 9
22 The Star online 11
21
3 days per week or more
online brands CNN 8
21 CNN.com 6
19
Taifa Leo 14
21 Nairobi News 13
18
Business Daily 12
20 Business Daily onlilne 10
18
Al Jazeera 8
20 Citizen Radio online 7
18
The Nairobian 13
19 Al Jazeera online 6
17
The People Daily (free daily) 12
18 Taifa Leo online 10
17

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

METHODOLOGY NOTE Tisa Sans Pro Light
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These data are based on an online survey of mainly English-speaking, online news users in Kenya – a subset of a larger, more diverse, media
market. Respondents were generally more affluent, younger (18–50 only), have higher levels of formal education, and are more likely to live in
cities than the overall Kenyan population. Findings should not be taken to be nationally representative.
SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* DEVICES FOR NEWS
TV
2020–25 Social media
Print Computer Smartphone
100%

81% (-1) 92% (-2)

90% 91%
77% 75%
74% 69%

50% 47% Tablet

33%
52% (+4)
0%
2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Overall trust in the news (65%) is relatively high compared with other countries in
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
our survey, though a little lower with under-35s. Many of the most popular trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
commercial brands such as Citizen, NTV, and the Daily Nation are trusted by around Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
90% of our sample. This is a reflection of the (still) largely independent reputation of BBC News 90% 6% 5%
most Kenyan media, despite growing economic and political pressures. Citizen Radio 88% 6% 5%
Citizen TV 90% 5% 5%
Daily Nation 89% 6% 4%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2020–25 K-24 TV 85% 9% 6%
100% KBC (public broadcaster) 81% 9% 10%
KTN Home 88% 8% 4%

65% NTV 89% 6% 5%

65%
Radio Jambo 83% 10% 7%
50% 50%
Radio Maisha 83% 10% 7%
Taifa Leo 82% 10% 7%
OVERALL TRUST The Business Daily 85% 9% 6%
0%
3/48 markets The People Daily 80% 11% 9%
2020 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ The Standard 88% 7% 5%
The Star 80% 11% 9%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
117
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 49.41 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

51%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 YouTube 54% (-5) 78% 4 X 42% (+5) 54%
SHARE NEWS 2 Facebook 52% (-8) 70% 5 TikTok 38% (+2) 62%
via social, messaging,
3 WhatsApp 46% (-14) 74% 6 Instagram 26% (-3) 53%
or email
162 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

MOROCCO
After years of criticism over limited press freedom and state-
dominated media, Morocco has recently shown signs of positive
change. Jailed and exiled journalists have been released and new
voices are gaining prominence in digital platforms, raising hopes for
a freer media environment.
Population 38m
Internet penetration 91%

Marking the 25th anniversary of groups (30%) are also widely used for public prosecutor. Critics argue this move
his accession to the throne, King accessing and sharing information while undermines transparency and shields
Mohammed VI issued a royal pardon the encrypted messaging app Telegram public officials from accountability.
in July 2024, resulting in the release is also gaining traction. Heavy use of
and dropping of charges against all social media combined with relatively low Despite Morocco’s 2016 Press and
jailed and exiled journalists.146 This trust in traditional news sources has left Publishing Code officially abolishing
move offered cautious optimism for Moroccans vulnerable to regular bouts of prison sentences for press offences,
greater press freedom in a country misinformation. Over half of our survey activists argue that authorities
that has long imposed restrictions sample (54%) say they are worried about continue to rely on the Penal Code to
on independent media. Yet questions being able to tell the difference between prosecute expression-related charges.
linger over whether these steps will real and fake news on the internet. Online The Committee to Protect Journalists
translate into lasting change, especially influencers/personalities (52%) are (CPJ) reported that Radi, Raissouni,
for smaller and independent outlets. seen as the biggest threat in that regard, and Bouachrine, though freed, remain
These developments unfold against the followed by national politicians (30%) unable to fully resume their professional
backdrop of an overwhelmingly digital and the news media themselves (28%). activities due to unclear legal statuses.147
news environment, where trust in media Reporters Without Borders noted in a
remains fragile and recent regulatory The popularity and reach of these social
recent report (2024) that independent
reforms have also drawn mixed reactions. and video networks is encouraging
journalists remain ‘under constant
a growing wave of content creators,
The vast majority of Morocco’s news pressure’, but Morocco has jumped
reshaping how news is created and
media is in Arabic but some of the most 24 places in the annual World Press
consumed in Morocco, particularly among
influential business publications are in Freedom ranking since 2023.148 Civil
younger generations. YouTube is especially
French. Total daily newspaper circulation society and journalists are also stepping
used by bloggers, political commentators,
has been falling for years and sales were up their efforts to establish clear ways
and other influencers to publish content
badly affected during the COVID-19 of tracking offences and advocating for
that is on the border of what is accepted
pandemic. Printed newspapers are almost stronger protections, as was showcased
speech in Morocco. Alongside them are
all state-subsidised, but this money comes when the International Federation
the recently released journalists – most
with strings attached. Consulting firm of Journalists (IFJ) and the Moroccan
notably Soulaimane Raissouni, Omar
Imperium recently reported a 23.7% year- National Press Union hosted a regional
Radi, and Taoufik Bouachrine. Bouachrine,
on-year increase in media publications, workshop in Casablanca to strengthen
in particular, quickly returned to the
with over 136,000 articles produced in press freedom monitoring.
public conversation, launching his own
August 2024 alone, with the vast majority YouTube podcast titled Talk on Politics, Morocco’s media landscape is at a
published online. Publication in all where he has been calling for deeper crossroads, shaped by significant
languages is increasing ahead of the FIFA political and media reforms. developments in press freedom, digital
World Cup of 2030, which Morocco will be consumption, and legal reforms. The
co-hosting with Spain and Portugal. At the same time the legal environment
royal pardons of prominent journalists in
remains fraught. In 2023, the Moroccan
According to our Digital News July 2024 offered a glimpse of progress,
government dissolved the elected
Report data, nearly four in five (78%) yet the subsequent challenges they face
National Press Council and replaced it
respondents now get their news online, underscore the persistent obstacles to
with a government-appointed committee,
with social media and messaging apps true media independence.
raising concerns about increased state
playing a significant role. YouTube and control. Further controversy came in Imru AL Qays Talha Jebril
Facebook are the most widely used 2024 with the approval of Bill 03.23, Research fellow , Moroccan Institute for Policy
networks overall and for news (49% and amending criminal procedures to limit Analysis and Co-Managing Partner,
47% respectively) along with Instagram NGOs from initiating corruption-related A&K Advisors
(32%) and TikTok (24%). WhatsApp legal actions unless authorised by the

146
https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/morocco-releases-jailed-journalists-pardons-2476-convicts-2024-07-29/
147
https://cpj.org/2024/10/moroccos-pardoned-journalists-face-smears-threats-after-prison/
148
https://rsf.org/en/country/morocco-western-sahara
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis Line News
on both Report 2025 | Morocco
layers: 163
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYK TV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE 2M (commercial TV) 40
8 Hespress 45
11
Al Aoula (state-owned TV) 10
33 2M online 8
28
TOP BRANDS
Medi 1 TV 12
28 Al Jazeera online 7
25
% Weekly usage
Foreign Arabic TV (Al Hurra, Al Jazeera, CNN Arabic, etc.) 5
17 Hibapress 11
20
Weekly use Medi 1 Radio 8
17 Al Aoula online 7
20
TV, radio & print Assabah (newspaper) 9
16 Chouf TV 7
19
3 days per week or more Med Radio 8
15 Medi 1 TV online 7
18
TV, radio & print
SNRT TV News (public broadcaster) 7
15 Le36° 9
16
Weekly use
Al Maghribia (state-owned TV) 7
14 Regional or local newspaper website 7
11
online brands
Chada FM 7
13 Medi 1 Radio online 4
11
3 days per week or more
online brands Al Akhbar (pan-Arab newspaper) 7
12 Assabah online 6
9
MFM Radio 6
12 Le Matin online 6
9
Al-Massae (popular newspaper) 7
11 Al Maghribia online 5
9
SNRT Radio News (public broadcaster) 5
10 Med Radio online 4
9
Al Ahdath Al Maghribia (newspaper) 7
10 Al Yaoum 24 online 5
8
Aswat Radio 5
9 Médias24 5
8

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CHANGING MEDIA 90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White

Online and social media remain popular sources of news in Morocco with our educated and more urban sample, but TV and print remain
important with older generations and for those who are not online.

SOURCES OF NEWS DEVICES FOR NEWS

TV Radio Print Computer Smartphone

42% (+1) 26% (-) 12% (-2) 65% (+2) 83% (+1)
Any Online* News websites/apps Social media Tablet

82% (+3) 43% (-2) 60% (-) 35% (-1)

* Incl. news websites/apps, social media and video networks, news podcasts (10%), and AI chatbots (6%)

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the below brands were included in the survey.
Overall trust in news sources in Morocco is amongst the lowest in our survey at
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
just 28%. Many Moroccans do not see news media as truly independent, avoiding trusted brands as it is not exhaustive.
sensitive subjects and mostly reflecting government views and perspectives. Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
Having said that, a number of news brands do have reasonable levels of trust, 2M 59% 18% 23%
including some of the most widely used commercial (Medi 1) and state-owned Al Aoula 64% 17% 20%
outlets on TV (Al Aoula) and online (Hespress). Al Maghribia 59% 21% 20%
Al-Massae 51% 27% 22%
Assabah 51% 26% 23%
Hespress 62% 20% 19%

28% (-3) 54% (+1)

Hibapress 52% 25% 22%
L'Economiste 55% 25% 19%
Le Matin 52% 26% 22%
OVERALL TRUST MISINFORMATION CONCERN
Le360 47% 28% 25%
42/48 markets =31/48 markets
Medi 1 Radio 64% 18% 17%
Medi 1 TV 66% 17% 16%
Morocco World News 44% 31% 25%
SNRTNews 60% 20% 21%
Télé Maroc 50% 29% 21%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
120
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 48.04 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

29%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 YouTube 49% (-1) 70% 4 WhatsApp 30% (-6) 63%
SHARE NEWS 2 Facebook 47% (-4) 63% 5 TikTok 24% (+2) 41%
via social, messaging,
3 Instagram 32% (-1) 53% 6 Telegram 11% (-1) 26%
or email
164 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

NIGERIA
Nigeria’s media landscape is at a pivotal moment amid rapidly
changing consumption patterns, threats to press freedom, and a
potential new wave of disruption from artificial intelligence (AI).
The news industry continues to transform and innovate but economic
pressures including cuts to US budgets for media support cast a
shadow over its future. Population 229m
Internet penetration 39%

Public and private national broadcasters Despite these innovations, rising assaulted or detained by security
remain key sources of information for operational costs, declining advertising agencies.151 The Nigerian Guild of Editors
most Nigerians. The Nigerian Television revenues, reduced donor funding, and (NGE) and the Socio-Economic Rights and
Authority (NTA), as the country’s largest fluctuating exchange rates threaten Accountability Project (SERAP) have since
public broadcaster, maintains a wide media sustainability. While digital media raised the alarm, calling for urgent
reach through its network of stations platforms are growing, they generate international intervention to safeguard
across Nigeria alongside privately owned lower ad revenues compared to legacy press freedom and protect journalists
Channels Television, Arise TV, TVC News, platforms such as TV and print – and less from threats.
and African Independent Television. than Western counterparts. Nigerian
AI adoption is gaining traction in Nigerian
Foreign broadcasters such as the BBC, news media rely heavily on advertising
newsrooms, with tools being used for
CNN, and Al Jazeera are also popular, with for online monetisation, but changes to
tasks such as copy-editing, content
the BBC’s multilingual reach boosted by Google’s search algorithms and a
illustration, content strategy, and ad
rebroadcasting agreements. The country consequent decline in revenue have
targeting. Media organisations are also
also supports around 100 national and further strained their financial stability.
using AI-driven solutions to combat
local print titles, of which the best known
Investigative journalism, once a misinformation, with the Centre for
include The Punch, The Nation, Vanguard,
cornerstone of Nigeria’s media landscape, Journalism Innovation and Development
The Guardian, and The Premium Times.
has become increasingly reliant on funding recently launching Dubawa.ai, an
These traditional sources, however, from organisations such as Internews and AI-powered fact-checking chatbot to
are losing reach as digital and social media the National Endowment for Democracy verify information and counter false
play a bigger role, with influencers and (NED).150 The recent United States funding narratives, while Dataphyte introduced
citizen journalists frequently breaking cut has had a severe impact on journalists Nubia, a tool that enables newsrooms to
stories ahead of mainstream media. participating in journalism fellowships, analyse complex datasets and produce
X experienced a 9pp increase in news including the Cable News Foundation’s data-driven stories efficiently.
usage this year, reaching 49% of our Amplifying Climate Storytelling Fellowship
The Digital Switch-Over (DSO) project,
survey sample which is made up of mainly programme, and has affected media outlets
spearheaded by the National
English-speaking, online news users in that depend on these grants to sustain their
Broadcasting Commission (NBC),
Nigeria. Facebook (65%) and YouTube operations. This has resulted in fewer
is expected to be completed in 2025.
(49%) are also widely used for news, investigative reports and a reduced
President Bola Tinubu recently approved
with many newsrooms leveraging the capacity to pursue in-depth reporting.
a 10bn naira ($6.3m) grant to accelerate
latter for live news streaming. Conversely,
Meta’s plans to discontinue its fact- the project which will enhance coverage
WhatsApp saw a 5pp decline, dropping to
checking programme in the United States and clarity of news channels, ensuring
53% while Instagram and Telegram have
has raised alarm bells for the Nigerian that more Nigerians, especially in
experienced modest growth.
Fact-Checking Alliance (NFA), whose underserved and rural areas, have greater
The Nigerian media market continues members are heavily reliant on the access to credible news.
to grow with total revenues expected to funding. Though there is no timetable for
Nigeria’s complex political environment
reach US$540.50m by 2029 with around the ending of the programme outside the
continues to shape the media agenda,
half coming from digital. This has US, there are fears that this could lead to
driving increased scrutiny of government
encouraged a range of digital start-ups as widespread job losses and the unchecked
policies and actions. Media regulation,
well as new investments by established spread of false narratives.
digital rights, and economic challenges,
media. The South African Times has
Meanwhile, press freedom in Nigeria including inflation, unemployment,
entered the market facilitated by the
remains under serious threat, with an and poverty, have been central themes
African Continental Free Trade Area
alarming increase in attacks on in media discourse, with outlets critically
(AfCFTA)149 and digital-born Urban
journalists. During the 2024 analysing government responses.
Express News launched a print edition in
#EndBadGovernance protests, the
Lagos and Abuja to cater for readers Tolulope Adeyemo
Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)
preferring traditional formats. Code for Africa
recorded 56 cases of journalists being

149
https://www.vanguardngr.com/2024/06/southern-african-times-moves-to-expand-operations-into-nigerian-market/
150
https://www.ned.org/statement-on-neds-funding-disruption-and-program-suspensions/
151
https://cpj.org/2024/08/in-nigeria-at-least-56-journalists-attacked-and-harassed-as-protests-roil-region/
 Axis Line on both layers: Axis LineDigital
on bothNews
layers:Report 2025 | Nigeria 165
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYKONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE BBC News 52
19 BBC News online 47
15
The Punch 24
49 Legit.ng 16
45
TOP BRANDS
Channels TV (24-hour news) 15
49 Punch online 19
42
% Weekly usage
The Vanguard 23
43 Vanguard online 20
41
Weekly use CNN 15
43 Pulse.ng 15
39
TV, radio & print Daily Trust 21
42 Daily Trust online 17
36
3 days per week or more Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) 15
41 News24 19
33
TV, radio & print
TVC News 15
39 Channels Television online 11
32
Weekly use
The Guardian 21
37 CNN.com 10
32
online brands
Al Jazeera 13
35 TVC News online 13
31
3 days per week or more
online brands Arise TV News 14
32 Daily Post 16
30
The Sun 18
29 Sahara Reporters 11
28
Wazobia FM 14
29 Arise TV online 11
27
Africa Independent Television 10
22 Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) online 9
24
THISDAY 12
18 Wazobia FM online 9
22
Silverbird Television 11
18 Radio Nigeria 10
20

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

METHODOLOGY NOTE Tisa Sans Pro Light
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Light
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking
90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White
These data are based on a survey of English-speaking, online news users in Nigeria – a subset of a larger, more diverse, media market.
Respondents are generally more affluent, younger (18–50 only), have higher levels of formal education, and are more likely to live in cities
than the wider Nigerian population. Findings should not be taken to be nationally representative.
SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* DEVICES FOR NEWS
TV
2021–25 Social media
Print Computer Smartphone
100%

77% (-) 92% (+1)

94% 94%
78% 79%
66% 65%
50% Tablet

28%
34%
58% (+4)
0%
2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Trust in the news has increased significantly since 2021, alongside some recent
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
improvements in the press freedom index scores from RSF. Nigerian audiences trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
remain highly interested in news and despite – or perhaps because of – the Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
challenges posed by misinformation and press freedom, leading brands that are seen Africa Independent Television 82% 9% 9%
as largely independent, such as BBC News, ChannelsTV, and The Punch, remain Arise TV News 84% 8% 8%
credible sources for most Nigerians. BBC News 90% 4% 6%
Channels TV 89% 5% 6%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2021–25 News Agency of Nigeria 77% 11% 11%
100% Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) 80% 7% 13%
Premium Times 80% 10% 10%
68% Pulse.ng 80% 11% 10%

68%
54% The Guardian 84% 7% 8%
50%
The Nation 82% 9% 10%
The Punch 87% 6% 7%
OVERALL TRUST The Sun 81% 10% 9%
0%
1/48 markets The Vanguard 85% 8% 7%
2021 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ ThisDay 79% 11% 10%
TVC News 83% 7% 9%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
122
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 46.81 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

59%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 65% (+3) 79% 4 X 49% (+9) 62%
SHARE NEWS 2 WhatsApp 53% (-5) 80% 5 Instagram 41% (+3) 68%
via social, messaging,
3 YouTube 49% (+5) 75% 6 Telegram 31% (+1) 65%
or email
166 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

SOUTH AFRICA
South Africa’s media are characterised by public and commercial
broadcasters operating in multiple languages, a small number
of publishing groups from a legacy print background, and a few
successful digital-born outlets. In an increasingly constrained
business environment, media organisations and industry bodies have
prioritised the loss of revenue to platforms and the funding for local Population 61m
and community news. Internet penetration 76%

The Competition Commission of SA issued fund (separate to the one referenced will have an impact on trust, given that 56%
its findings from the Media and Digital above) to help organisations that produce of South Africans identify TikTok as a
Platforms Market Inquiry it initiated in public interest journalism. SANEF has potential source of disinformation.
2023. The report looked at the negative approached corporates and
impact of major technology giants on the philanthropists in an effort to raise a The news ecosystem in South Africa is far
media industry, and how the decline of reported R100m ($5.5m) in the first year.153 from healthy, with print’s death spiral
South African journalism risks undermining almost at an end, and digital news and
democratic institutions.152 Among the Concern about information integrity is broadcast platforms battling to sustain
commission’s recommendations was that still high in South Africa, and some news themselves in the face of social media
Google should contribute between R300m organisations have responded by platforms, and especially the migration
($16.5m) and R500m ($27.5m) per year into including fact-checking desks as part of there of younger audiences. While there
a journalism sustainability fund over the their core offering. The country’s largest, are positive interventions being made, it’s
next three to five years; that digital News24, which also has one of the going to take a much more concerted
platforms implement algorithmic highest trust levels, has launched a effort by news organisations to maintain
fairness measures to ensure South ‘full-time disinformation desk’, and the relevance and sustainability.
African media outlets receive equitable digital-born news site the Daily Maverick
launched a dedicated Factcheck Hub, in Chris Roper
representation; and that YouTube and Deputy CEO, Code for Africa
Meta should increase revenue share to partnership with the fact-checking
news publishers. Additionally, a 5–10% non-profit Africa Check.
levy on digital advertising revenue will be In December 2024, the Daily Maverick had
imposed if platforms fail to implement to make the first cuts in its history,
these remedies. amounting to around 15% of its operating
Stakeholders have been given four months costs. Earlier in the year it had shut down
to comment on the findings, before the its service for a day to highlight the crisis
final report is released later in 2025. The that the global journalism industry faces.
commission also addressed the threat of Meanwhile arguments over the future of
AI to traditional news organisations, and the public broadcaster continue to rage,
proposed a range of measures, including with the SABC expecting to make a
giving news media the option to negotiate R590m financial loss to end of March
collectively with AI companies, and to opt 2025. A bill was submitted to put the
out of AI scraping. broadcaster back on an even keel, but
In a move that resonates with the 2025 critics suggested this was an attempt to
DNR survey’s finding that South Africans’ bring the broadcaster back under
interest in local news (60%) is the highest government control.
of the countries surveyed, the Association Despite resource crunches, some
of Independent Publishers and Google newsrooms are embracing the potential of
established the Digital News AI, and also establishing positions for new
Transformation Fund, making available beats that reflect the evolving concerns of
R114m (approximately $6.3m) over three journalism, such as crypto investigations.
years to support the sustainability and Although a recent study revealed that the
digital transformation of small, adoption of AI into journalistic practice is
independent local news publishers often at a personal, rather than institutional
through targeted project-based funding. level, there are several newsrooms that
In another intervention aimed at have incorporated AI into their publishing
bolstering the news industry, the South systems (Adjin-Tetley et al. 2024). The use
African National Editors’ Forum is of TikTok for news has grown 5pp, and this
establishing a journalism sustainability

152
Competition Commission findings. https://www.compcom.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/CC_MDPMI-Provisional-Report_Non-Confidential-Final.pdf
153
https://www.news24.com/fin24/economy/sanef-approaches-blsa-to-help-establish-journalism-sustainability-fund-20241018
 Axis Line on both layers: Digital
Axis News
Line on both Report
layers: 2025 | South Africa 167
0.5pt stroke weight 0.5pt stroke weight
Rounded ends Rounded ends
WEEKLY REACH OFFLINE 90% CMYKTV,Black
RADIO, AND PRINT 90% CMYK ONLINE
Black
AND ONLINE SABC News (incl. SABC 1,2,3) 46
12 News24 58
19
eNCA 13
42 eNCA online 14
45
TOP BRANDS
Local radio news 9
25 SABC News online 15
40
% Weekly usage
Sunday Times 17
25 Daily Sun online 14
25
Weekly use MetroFM 11
24 BBC News online 9
19
TV, radio & print BBC News 10
20 CNN.com 8
17
3 days per week or more CNN 9
20 Opera News 7
14
TV, radio & print
Regional or local newspaper 10
15 The Citizen online 8
13
Weekly use
Community newspaper 8
14 The South African 8
13
online brands
Newzroom Afrika 5
14 Netwerk24 online 6
12
3 days per week or more
online brands The Citizen 9
14 Daily Maverick 6
12
Sowetan 8
13 Community newspaper online 6
11
UkhoziFM 4
13 Al Jazeera online 5
11
Isolezwe 7
12 IOL 5
11
SAFM 4
9 Mail & Guardian online 6
10
The Star 6
8 TimesLive 7
10

Text: Numbers: Text: Numbers:

METHODOLOGY NOTE Tisa Sans Pro Light
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Light
6pt w/ -20 tracking
Tisa Sans Pro Medium
6pt w/ -20 tracking
90% CMYK Black White 90% CMYK Black White
These data are based on a survey of English-speaking, online news users in South Africa – an important part of a larger, more diverse, media
market. Respondents are generally more affluent, younger, have higher levels of formal education, and are more likely to live in cities than the
wider South African population. Findings should not be taken to be nationally representative.
SOURCES OF NEWS Any online* DEVICES FOR NEWS No data for 2023;
TV question reformulated in
2019–25 Social media
2019–25 2024 to improve accuracy
Print
100% 100%
90% 88% 86%
72% 76%
71%
68% 66%
55% 58%
50% 50% 45%
40%

19% 19%

0% 0%
2019 2021 2023 2025 2019 2021 2023 2025
* Incl. news websites/apps, social/video networks, news podcasts, and AI chatbots

TRUST PUBLIC OPINION ON BRAND TRUST

Only the brands listed were included in the survey.
Although South Africa (55%) is still well ahead of the global average (40%), it has
It should not be treated as a list of the most or least
suffered a 6pp drop since 2022’s high of 61%. The fact that almost all news brands trusted brands, as it is not exhaustive.
have suffered a decline in trust is also a disturbing sign, signalling that the industry Brand Trust Neither Don’t Trust
will have to actively work to reverse this trend. BBC News 75% 13% 12%
City Press 65% 23% 13%
Daily Maverick 63% 22% 15%
Daily Sun 55% 21% 24%
OVERALL TRUST SCORE 2019–25 eNCA 80% 11% 8%
100% EWN (Eyewitness News) 57% 25% 17%
IOL 56% 26% 18%
Mail & Guardian 67% 21% 12%

55%
55% News24 81% 10% 8%
50% 49%
Regional or local newspaper 67% 20% 13%
SABC News (public broadcaster) 75% 13% 12%
OVERALL TRUST Sowetan 60% 24% 17%
0% =5/48 markets Sunday Times 73% 16% 11%
2019 2025
Proportion that trusts ‘most news most of the time’ The Citizen 68% 21% 11%
TimesLive 67% 21% 13%
Q6_brand trust. How trustworthy would you say news from the following
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
27
brands is? Please use the scale below, where 0 is ‘not at all trustworthy’ and
Score: 10 is ‘completely trustworthy’. Details: 6–10 coded as ‘Trust’, 5 coded as
INDEX SCORE 2025 75.71 / 180 ‘Neither’, 0–4 coded as ‘Don’t trust’. Those that haven’t heard of each brand
were excluded. Whether respondents consider a brand trustworthy is their
subjective judgement, and the scores are aggregates of public opinion, not
Measure of press freedom from NGO Reporters Without Borders based on expert assessment. More at rsf.org an objective assessment of underlying trustworthiness.

TOP SOCIAL, MESSAGING, AND VIDEO NETWORKS

44%
Rank Brand For News For All Rank Brand For News For All
1 Facebook 50% (-1) 71% 4 TikTok 33% (+5) 55%
SHARE NEWS 2 YouTube 42% (-5) 71% 5 X 16% (-3) 25%
via social, messaging,
3 WhatsApp 41% (-5) 77% 6 Instagram 15% (-2) 37%
or email
168 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

SECTION 4
 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025 169

SECTION 4

References
The authors welcome feedback on this report
and suggestions on how to improve our work
via reuters.institute@politics.ox.ac.uk as well
as potential partnerships and support for our
ongoing work.
170 Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism | Digital News Report 2025

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