Young people want their news to be more fun, a new report says

In the news industry, there’s no shortage of data that says the same thing: young adults and older adults get their news in different ways.

While older adults (age 55 and up) are mostly locked in on traditional news sources, young people increasingly turn to influencers and AI. As newsrooms grapple with how to lure younger audiences to their platforms, a new report published Tuesday asks a different question: What do young people actually want their news to be like?

The answer is, well, more fun. (Wouldn’t we all like that?)

The Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at the University of Oxford analyzed a decade’s worth of its own research about the news consumption habits of 18- to 24-year-olds from around the world, compared to those of adults ages 55 and up. Both groups prioritized local and international news, but younger adults ranked “fun news” (satire and things that make them laugh) fifth, while older adults ranked it tenth.

In addition to being informative, young people also want their news to be entertaining, which the report’s authors attribute to “the increased use of platforms that provide both almost simultaneously may be shaping preferences and expectations.”

While younger news consumers generally think the media does a good job of keeping them informed, it’s less successful at making them feel better about the world.

Some news publishers have taken note of this desire for “good news”:

The BBC (UK), Daily Maverick (South Africa), and Excelsior (Mexico) have created designated sections within their websites that collate good news, while the Guardian (UK) and Delfino.cr (Costa Rica) offer uplifting newsletters. The Globe and Mail (Canada) has done deeper editorial restructuring with this in mind, creating new beats for “healthy living” and “happiness,” among others.

Overall, the report found that young people’s consumption habits aren’t a monolith and have changed with the times. While young people in 2015 were more likely to be online news consumers, in 2025 they gravitate more to social-first news and media.

“The data are clear that young people consume a plethora of media and information, often in more diverse and complex ways,” the report’s authors write. “Their growing appetite for audio and visual formats comes with a desire for the intimacy and authenticity of personality-led content. They also tend to be at the forefront of experimentation with new technologies, such as AI, and more open to its use by journalists.”

Read the full report here.