More young Australians and women are consuming news more than once a day, driven in part by an interest in the Israel-Gaza war, according to the latest digital news report from the University of Canberra’s News and Media Research Centre.
The Digital News Report: Australia 2024 found that more than half of Australians (51%) accessed news more than once a day, a 3 percentage point increase from last year. Among young Australians and women, the growth was larger at 5 percentage points, reflecting a growing interest in international affairs.
Tim Duggan, chair of the Digital Publishers’ Alliance, said the Israel-Gaza conflict represents a ‘news moment’ for Gen Z, drawing them into deeper engagement with wider topics. “Gen Z are broadly driven by a deep sense of social awareness, and the horrors of the Israel-Palestinian conflict is this ‘moment’ for the next generation when they can’t look away,” he said.
The report also found that one quarter of Australians now rely on social media as their main source of news, with 60% of Gen Z using social media as their primary news source, up from 47% in 2023. However, researchers warned that Meta’s closure of its news tab and de-prioritisation of political content on Instagram could reduce the visibility of reliable news.
While heavy news consumers showed increased interest in international affairs, light news consumers reported higher news fatigue. The report noted that television remains the most popular news source (56%), but social media is catching up (49%), particularly among younger generations who prefer Instagram and TikTok.
