AI chatbots gain ground as news source: report

A new report by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism shows a growing number of people are using generative AI chatbots like ChatGPT, Google’s Gemini, and Meta’s Llama for news.

The global survey, conducted by YouGov with 97,000 respondents across 48 countries, found that 7% use AI tools to access news.

That number rises to 12% among those under 35, and 15% among those under 25.

Many use AI to summarize (27%), translate (24%), recommend (21%) articles, or ask questions about current events (18%).

The report also highlights concerns about accuracy and trust. Respondents worry about AI hallucinations and transparency.

At the same time, traditional media continues to lose ground to social platforms.

Nearly half of 18–24-year-olds rely on TikTok for news, especially in India, Brazil, Indonesia, and Thailand.

🔗 Source: The Economic Times

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ The historical pattern of audience adaptation to new information technologies

The shift to AI chatbots for news follows a recurring pattern of audience migration that dates back centuries.

When mass-produced newspapers emerged in the 19th century, they created what scholars identified as the first “information overload” crisis, with readers struggling to manage the sudden abundance of printed materials 1.

The internet triggered a similar transformation in the early 2000s, with online news consumption more than doubling between 1996-2000, while television news viewership dropped from 74% to 55% during the same period 2.

By 2019, 65% of news consumers were accessing content through “side doors” like search engines rather than visiting news sites directly, showing how quickly behaviors adapt to new technologies 3.

Today’s 7% adoption rate of AI chatbots for news (rising to 15% among under-25s) reflects early adoption patterns seen in previous technological transitions, suggesting we’re witnessing the beginning of another fundamental shift in information consumption 4.