74% people want impartial news, except for when it relates to social injustice
Over the past 20 months we have seen a fundamental shift in how we consume media driven by the rise of bite sized video streaming and infinite reel scrolling on platforms like Tik Tok now dubbed ‘social entertainment’ platforms (no longer social media platforms). A full 50% of Generation-Z prefer to stay up to date on news and current events via social media, compared to just 8% of Baby Boomers. The figures are almost reversed for TV news, with 58% of Baby Boomers citing it as their preferred medium in comparison with 12% of Gen-Zxiv.
Impartiality remains key with 74% of people still preferring news that reflects a range of opinion and leaves the final judgement to the consumer. As many as 2 in 3 people believe that news outlets should strive for neutrality on every issue. However, younger groups are less likely to support impartiality in some cases, such as social justice issuesxv. Time will tell if this is a signal of partisanship or the emergence of a new centre ground. It’s not just news media where we’re seeing emerging patterns. The pandemic accelerated our use of streaming servicesxvi. Film studios have responded by releasing new productions simultaneous to their box office debutxvii. Meanwhile, with just over 1 billion users TikTok has spurred the rise of a more authentic online self. Its users are showing a greater preference for content that is less polished, and more entertainment-based than traditional social media platforms with just over 2 in 3 users (64%) saying they can be their true selves on the appxviii.
xiv https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/industry/technology/digital-media-trends-consumption-habits-survey/summary.html xv https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/digital-news-report/2021/dnr-executive-summary xvi https://www.pwc.com/us/en/services/consulting/library/consumer-intelligence-series/consumer-video-streaming-behavior.html xvii https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/dune-stream-online-download-hbo-max-b1944440.html xviii https://www.tiktok.com/business/en-US/blog/nielsen-study-tiktok-discovery-content-authentic