2021年第十版数字新闻报告（英）_164页_6mb

Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2021 Summary

Core Content

The Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2021 is the tenth edition of the annual report, covering 46 global markets with a total sample size of over 100,000 respondents. The report highlights the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic on news consumption, media trust, and the evolving role of digital platforms in shaping the news landscape. It also explores the economic challenges faced by traditional media, the shift in audience behavior, and the perceptions of impartiality and trust in news across different demographics and regions.

Main Findings

1. Trust in News

• Overall trust in news has increased by six percentage points since the start of the pandemic, with 44% of respondents trusting most news most of the time.
• Finland continues to lead in trust with 65%, while the United States has the lowest trust at 29%.
• Trust in news from search engines and social media has remained stable, but the trust gap between traditional news and social media has grown, with audiences increasingly favoring reliable and accurate sources.

2. Pandemic Impact on News Consumption

• The pandemic has accelerated the shift to digital news consumption.
• Television news has seen a significant increase in usage, especially in Western Europe, with Sky News (+5pp) in the UK and n-tv (+6pp) in Germany being notable beneficiaries.
• Print newspapers have experienced further declines, with lockdowns limiting physical distribution and reducing their relevance.

3. Audience Preferences and Platform Use

• Social media remains a primary source of news, particularly among younger audiences and those with lower education levels.
• Messaging apps like WhatsApp and Telegram are especially popular in the Global South, raising concerns about the spread of misinformation.
• Smartphones have become the main device for news consumption, with 73% of users accessing news via mobile devices.
• Podcasts have seen slower growth, partly due to movement restrictions.

4. News Financing and Business Models

• Subscription and membership models have gained traction, but the overall percentage of people paying for online news remains low.
• In Norway, 45% of users pay for news, followed by Sweden (30%), USA (21%), Finland (20%), Netherlands (17%), and Switzerland (17%).
• In the US and Norway, a significant portion of subscribers are now purchasing multiple subscriptions, often to local or regional news brands.

5. Perceptions of Impartiality and Fairness

• The notion of journalistic impartiality is being re-evaluated, with some younger groups questioning its applicability in social justice contexts.
• There is concern about the fair representation of women, young people, ethnic minorities, and political partisans in news coverage.
• The trust gap between traditional media and social media has widened, with Facebook being seen as the main source of false information in many regions, while messaging apps are a greater concern in the Global South.

6. Regional Insights

• The report includes new markets such as India, Indonesia, Thailand, Nigeria, Colombia, and Peru, broadening the global perspective.
• Online samples tend to under-represent older and less affluent populations, leading to less accurate national comparisons in countries with lower internet penetration (e.g., India and South Africa).
• Local news is still valued, but its role is shrinking, with audiences turning to other platforms for non-political and non-crime-related information.

Key Trends

• Digital disruption continues to affect the news industry, with platforms playing an increasingly dominant role.
• Paying for news has increased in a few richer Western countries, but overall adoption is still low.
• Social media and messaging apps are critical channels for news, especially in the Global South, where misinformation is a major concern.
• Traditional news brands are still trusted, but audience engagement is shifting towards digital and mobile-first formats.

Methodology Highlights

• The survey was conducted by YouGov in January/February 2021.
• Quotas were used to ensure demographic representation, with additional political quotas in some markets.
• Online samples are not nationally representative in countries with lower internet penetration and higher mobile usage.
• The report is not fully representative of all news consumption habits due to recall bias and sampling limitations.

Conclusion

The 2021 report underscores the ongoing transformation of the news industry, driven by the pandemic, digital migration, and platform influence. It highlights the growing importance of trust, the decline of traditional media, and the increasing reliance on digital and mobile platforms for news. Despite the challenges, some news brands have benefited from the crisis, and the need for diverse and inclusive media is becoming more urgent.

Key Data

Additional Notes

• The report emphasizes the importance of local news, though its value is increasingly limited to specific topics like local politics and crime.
• Audience diversity is a growing concern, with young people, women, and ethnic minorities feeling less fairly represented.
• Public support for government intervention in news media is limited, despite the financial challenges the industry faces.
• Fundación Gabo has joined the project, supporting the translation of the report into Spanish.
• The report is available on the website at https://www.digitalnewsreport.org/2021, with additional data, charts, and slidepacks.