As concerns grow over the rise of artificial intelligence, especially with a new feature on Google that has already impacted American press traffic, this significant drop may just be the beginning. Recent research into news consumption habits indicates that traditional media is also losing ground to influencers.
Social Media as the Main News Source in the USA
The shifting trends in content consumption are becoming apparent in the United States and may soon spread to Europe. According to the 171-page Digital News Report 2025 by the Reuters Institute and the University of Oxford, content consumption habits are rapidly evolving.
The study, which surveyed 100,000 individuals across 48 countries, highlighted particularly striking behaviors in the Americas. For the first time, it revealed that 54% of people use social media as a news source through influencers, surpassing television and print newspapers.
The report also points out the rise of artificial intelligence, which, although still behind social media and television, could become a more dominant force in the coming years.
Facebook and YouTube Lead in News Consumption
While these findings are intriguing, the study delves deeper into which social media platforms are most popular for news consumption. While X, Elon Musk’s social network, has seen modest growth, influencers on TikTok and Instagram are experiencing more significant increases.
However, despite these gains, they still lag behind Facebook and YouTube, which remain the most dominant platforms overall.
Algorithms Creating Divisions in Public Opinion?
According to an analysis by SocialMediaToday, this new trend in news consumption might explain the rising extremism and deepening public divisions driven by increasingly polarized influencers.
Whether on X, TikTok, or Meta platforms, social media algorithms are heavily criticized for fostering anxiety, doubt, and fear among users.
While it may seem surprising at first, there is a clear rationale behind this phenomenon. By promoting increasingly divisive content through their algorithms, social media platforms can more easily generate engagement, sparking debates and visibility through comment section arguments and increased visibility.
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Samantha Klein is a seasoned tech journalist with a sharp focus on Apple and mobile ecosystems. With over a decade of experience, she brings insightful commentary and deep technical understanding to the fast-evolving world of consumer technology.