Australians are consuming more news after several years of declining interest, but the ways people access and engage with news continue to fragment, according to the Digital News Report: Australia 2026 released by the University of Canberra’s News & Media Research Centre.
The report found that news consumption increased over the past year, driven largely by stronger engagement among younger Australians and women, while social media has become a more prominent gateway to news.
At the same time, researchers said trust in news remains mixed, concerns about misinformation continue to grow, and younger audiences are increasingly turning to creators and influencers alongside traditional news sources.
News interest rebounds
According to the report, 56 per cent of Australians now access news more than once a day, up three percentage points from the previous year. Researchers attributed much of the increase to greater news use among people under 35 and women, groups that have traditionally been lighter news consumers.
The report said social media is now the country’s second most-used source of news, with 56 per cent of Australians using it weekly, just behind television at 57 per cent. It also found that social media has overtaken direct visits to news websites as the leading pathway to online news, accounting for 32 per cent of access compared with 31 per cent through direct visits.
While television remains the most widely used primary news source, researchers said audiences are increasingly watching news videos online, including through smart TVs and video platforms such as YouTube.
Younger audiences adopting different habits
The report highlighted a widening generational divide in news consumption, describing younger Australians’ habits as “unfixed and fluid”.
It found that 60 per cent of people aged 18 to 24 have never regularly read a newspaper, while nearly half of that age group use TikTok for news. Around seven in 10 Australians aged under 35 also obtain news from creators or influencers, compared with 43 per cent of news consumers overall.
Researchers said influencers currently complement rather than replace mainstream news, with most users continuing to rely on multiple sources. Those who use creators for news were more likely to describe the content as entertaining, relatable and easier to understand.
Trust and misinformation remain concerns
Despite increased news consumption, overall trust in news remained unchanged at 43 per cent, while trust in news people personally choose to consume rose to 54 per cent. Trust in news obtained through social media and AI chatbots remained considerably lower at 21 per cent and 19 per cent respectively.
The report also found that 77 per cent of Australians are concerned about distinguishing real from false information online, the highest level recorded among countries included in the international study. Researchers linked those concerns to the growing use of social media platforms and AI tools for accessing news.
Although interest in news has risen, 68 per cent of Australians said they still avoid news at least some of the time, with avoidance highest among women, younger adults and people who distrust news.
AI and paid news
The study found that nearly one in 10 Australians now use generative AI chatbots such as ChatGPT, Gemini or Perplexity to access news. Users most commonly relied on the tools to gather information from multiple sources, ask follow-up questions and simplify complex topics.
Meanwhile, payment for online news remained stable at 23 per cent, with Australia continuing to rank among the stronger markets globally for paid digital news. Researchers found younger Australians were more likely than older groups to pay for digital-only news subscriptions.
The report concluded that news organisations face the challenge of appealing to audiences who are increasingly connected but less loyal to individual brands or routines. It said maintaining high-quality journalism while adapting to new formats and platforms will be important for sustaining public trust and engagement.