Report finds people avoiding news and trusting it less
The news industry faces challenges building trust with its audiences and evolving its business model.
The Reuters News Report 2022 reveals new insights about digital news consumption based on a YouGov survey of over 93,000 online news consumers in 46 markets covering half of the world's population.
The longtitudinal study is the industy’s most exhaustive review of the news industry around the world. Here is our ten takeaways.
1. Fatigue in news consumption
COVID-19, the war in Ukraine and polarisation is leading consumers to disconnect from the news in many countries. More than a third of people (36%) say that news has a negative effect on their mood. News avoidance in the UK, has risen from 24% in 2017, to 46% in 2022.
2. Trust falls back after COVID-19 boost
Trust in news has fallen in almost half of the 46 markets studied by researchers reversing gains made during the pandemic. It is continuing the previous downward trend driven by Brexit in the UK, the turmoil of the Trump years in the US, and the Gilets Jaunes protests in France.
3. BBC under attack
The BBC reported record audiences in the first weeks of the Ukraine crisis, but it has also come under intense criticism for its reporting of Brexit, immigration, gender identity, and attitudes to COVID-19 vaccinations. Distrust in the BBC has grown from 11% in 2018, to 26% in 2022, fuelled by the political right and government criticism.
4. Subscription fatigue
Many publishers have been increasing their efforts to get audiences to pay for content online. Progress is mixed. Less than a fifth of consumers (17%) pay for online news. Publishers are universally concerned that the cost-of-living crisis will lead to subscription cutbacks.
5. Audiences reluctant to give up their data for news sites
Publishers need to build first party reader data to future proof against browser cookies being phased out in 2023. They routinely push readers to apps or ask for an email address before granting access to content. The report suggests that readers are reluctant to comply.
6. Smartphone is primary access device for news
The smartphone is the most important digital device for accessing news across countries. Social media (39%) has overtaken direct access via websites and apps (31%), followed by the smartphone home screen (12%), and aggregator apps such as Apple News (9%).
7. Social media news consumption
The consumption of news on Facebook is down five percentage points to 60% since its peak in 2017 and is now at a similar level to YouTube. Instagram (40%), TikTok (16%), and Telegram (11%) are the only networks to have grown their audiences for news in the last year.
8. TikTok emerges in news ecosystem
The Russian attacks on Ukraine have increased the profile of TikTok. Ukrainians have been documenting their experience of the war. Many publishers have increased their investment in the platform in the past year after being sceptical about the value of using an entertainment-led platform for news.
9. Misinformation fears
54% of respondents worry about identifying the difference between what is real and fake on the internet when it comes to news. People who say they mainly use social media as a source of news are more worried (61%) than people who don’t use it at all (48%). COVID-19 content is the most widespread source of misinformation
10. Text beats video for news content
Text is the preferred format for news content across all age groups. Younger audiences are more likely to say they watch rather than read news. The report suggests that this is because they are more exposed to networks such as Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. Podcast growth has resumed in more than half of the markets in the study.
