Young People Avoiding News, Reuters Report Finds

Young people are increasingly distancing themselves from traditional news consumption, according to the Reuters Digital News Report 2026. The study, presented at the DW Global Media Forum in Bonn, reveals unsettling trends in how news is accessed and trusted, particularly among younger demographics.

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data this year is quite unsettling in many aspects.

Jim Egan, the report's lead author from the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at the University of Oxford, described the findings as "quite unsettling." He emphasized that the report aims to provide factual analysis across markets, countering an industry often filled with opinion but lacking concrete data on its actual reach and impact. The survey, the largest of its kind globally, highlights a significant shift away from established news formats.

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We do this as an exercise in trying to insert some facts and some comparative analysis across different markets into an industry and into an ecosystem that is full of opinion but does not always know what's actually going on.

Social media and video platforms now lead as news sources, surpassing television and direct visits to news outlets' websites or apps. This trend is less about the growth of these platforms and more about a decline in the use of older media. "They're not only leaving, they're not even starting," Egan noted regarding young Americans who have never regularly watched TV news or used news websites.

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So social media consumption and usage itself isn't actually growing very much. But what we're seeing is a decline in the use of other platforms, such as television broadcast news, as well as going direct to a news organization's website or its app.

Ironically, as young people flock to social media for news, their trust in these sources is at its lowest. The report also highlights the growing importance of video formats, with 75% of respondents watching news videos weekly on platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram. Despite the popularity of video, news publishers are struggling to capitalize on this trend as audiences consume content on third-party platforms rather than directly from news organizations.

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They're not only leaving, they're not even starting.