We are pleased to announce the continuation of our partnership with the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism's annual Digital News Report 2024. Edelman is a long-term sponsor of the report, which is the largest study into news consumption habits globally.

This year, it covers 47 countries, which together account for more than half the world’s population.  The 2024 report documents the scale and impact of ‘platform resets’ driven by changing strategies of rival big tech companies, including social media, search, and video, as well as a new wave of disruption from AI and the implications for publishers and others who want to connect with the public. In a year when half of the world’s population goes to the polls, the report also addresses the rise of misinformation, the rise of news avoidance, and an examination of consumer attitudes to AI and the news.

 

 

 

 

Essential for anyone developing communications strategies

or wanting to know more about the media landscape in specific markets.

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Social media shifts and the rise of video platforms 

There is a further decline in the use of Facebook for news, and a growing reliance on messaging apps and video networks. Facebook news consumption (37%) is down 4 percentage points across all countries in the last year. Video is becoming a more important source of online news, with short news videos accessed by 66% of the global sample each week.

Concerns about the extent of unreliable content are widespread

Concern about what is real and what is fake on the internet when it comes to online news has risen by 3 percentage points in the last year with around six in ten (59%) saying they are concerned.

AI and the news industry

As publishers embrace the use of AI, there is widespread public suspicion about how it might be used, especially for ‘hard’ news stories such as politics or war. There is more comfort with the use of AI in behind-the-scenes tasks such as transcription and translation; in supporting rather than replacing journalists.

Business pressures mount as subscription growth stalls

The report data show little growth in news subscriptions, with just 17% saying they paid for any online news in the last year, across a basket of 20 richer countries.

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