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Is the news website dead?

ByYali N'Diaye

The freshly published 2026 edition of the Reuters Institute Digital News Report reveals a fundamental transformation in how the world consumes information. As we navigate a period of global “precarity,” the traditional pathways between journalists and the public are becoming less direct and more fragmented.

Here is what the latest data tells us about the future of news and how Canada is standing out.

The Great ‘Platformisation’

For the first time, social media and video networks have overtaken news websites and apps as the most widely used source of news globally (54% vs. 51%). This shift is happening across all age groups, signaling that news consumption is becoming less intentional and more “incidental,” often encountered while users are online for other reasons.

Furthermore, while online news video consumption has reached 77% globally, this growth is happening almost entirely on third-party platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. Alarmingly for traditional publishers, video consumption on their own branded websites and apps has actually declined by 5 percentage points this year.

The Rise of the ‘Personality-Led’ Newsroom

Audiences are increasingly turning to independent news creators and influencers, who now reach 27% of the global population weekly. Why the shift?

  • Relatability: Audiences find creators more entertaining and easier to understand than traditional news outlets.
  • Authenticity: For many, a relatable face is preferred over the formal “someone in a suit behind a desk” format.
  • Niche Expertise: While institutional news is valued for impartiality, creators are often praised for going deeper into specific topics than general media can.

Canada: The Global ‘Values-First’ Outlier

While global trends are consistent, Canada presents a unique profile, particularly in how its citizens choose to financially support journalism.

  • Social & Values-Based Motivation: Canada sits at the opposite end of the “motivational spectrum” compared to countries like Finland. While Finns pay for news primarily for direct utility, 63% of Canadians who pay for news cite a social or values-based motive, such as supporting journalism because it is important to society.
  • The Leader in One-Off Support: Canada has the highest proportion of respondents globally who make donations to news services (19%) and the highest proportion who make single, one-off payments for news (24%).
  • Resilient “News Lovers”: In many markets, the segment of highly engaged “news lovers” is shrinking. However, in Canada, this core group has remained unchanged at 23% of the population, showing remarkable durability despite trust in news hitting an all-time low of 37%.
  • “Imported” Creator Scene: Because Canada’s domestic news creator ecosystem is still developing, audiences rely heavily on “imported” international figures, such as Joe Rogan or high-profile political podcasters from the UK and US.

Yali N’Diaye, Y Perspective’s Founder, brings a unique blend of experiences with one common thread: the financial sector. A former market economist, she covered the intersection of economic policy and financial markets for 20 years from Paris to Washington D.C. to Ottawa, serving demanding institutional audiences. She has advised major Canadian financial players on reputation management, strategic messaging, thought leadership, public relations, and sustainability and ESG communications. A founding member of She Leads AI, Yali integrates AI-human collaboration into the workflow to drive more impact. She holds a Master’s in International Banking and Finance from Le Havre University and a Bachelor’s in Economics with a major in Economic Policy and Analysis from Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne in France. She is bilingual in English and French.

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