Digital News Report 2026

Digital News Report 2026

The Reuters Institute Digital News Report is being published for the fifteenth time this year and is considered the most comprehensive international study on news consumption. Media users in 48 countries were surveyed about their trust in the news, their preferred channels, and their use of new technologies such as AI chatbots.

Globally, a clear trend is emerging: Social media and video platforms have replaced direct use of news websites and apps as the primary means of accessing news online. AI chatbots are also becoming increasingly important for news research.

Germany is showing relatively stable trends. ARD and ZDF remain by far the brands with the widest reach and highest levels of trust, and overall trust in the news is above the international average. Structurally, however, the market is undergoing profound changes: A reformed State Broadcasting Treaty requires public broadcasters to make significant cost cuts, while daily newspapers continue to lose print circulation even as digital subscriptions grow.

Austria shows a similar pattern. ORF remains the clear leader in reach and trust, but the market is experiencing noticeable consolidation in the newspaper sector and significant cost-cutting measures in several newsrooms.

Last year, Switzerland was dominated by a referendum on a drastic cut to the broadcasting license fee for SRG SSR, which was rejected. Nevertheless, the public broadcaster remains under financial pressure, with budget and staff cuts announced for the coming years.

Overall, the DACH region shows above-average trust in public media compared to other countries, but faces the same structural challenges as the rest of Europe: declining advertising revenue, job cuts, and the question of how to respond to the growing influence of platforms and AI chatbots on journalistic value creation.