The importance of journalism for the digital information behaviour of young adults

The digital transformation is changing how young adults obtain information. The project used surveys, tracking apps, content analyses and focus groups to investigate which digital channels 18- to 25-year-olds use – and how they affect their political knowledge, attitudes and participation in democracy.

The digital transformation has led to a change in young adults' information behaviour. The project responded to this finding and used a multi-method study design to analyse the digital information repertoires of 18- to 25-year-olds.

The aim of the project was to find out what information young adults use on their mobile phones, which sources it comes from and how important journalistic content is. The researchers also investigated the quality of this content and whether news consumption influences political knowledge and voter participation.

In addition, through exchanges with journalistic media organisations, the researchers were able to draw practical conclusions about how professional journalism can win back young adults as a target audience.

The project was the first to systematically show how young adults obtain information online. It used new tracking methods and automated content analyses, providing important insights into how journalism can better reach young target groups.

Three main messages

Positive correlation between news consumption and political participation, trust in political institutions and political knowledge

The study confirmed the important role of journalism for the political system. The researchers showed that people who consume little or almost no news (news avoiders) have less trust in political institutions and participate less frequently in referendums than people who consume news regularly.

Political interest as a key variable

Young adults who are interested in politics know more about it, read more news and are more likely to vote. In fact, political interest proved to be a key influencing factor, linked to political knowledge and political participation. It is therefore important to expand civic education in schools, complementing initiatives to promote media literacy.

It's the content that counts!

It is not the quantity of news that counts, but the content: People who read political news on a specific topic, such as a popular vote, know more about it. General news consumption, however, does not automatically lead to more political knowledge.

The Relevance of Journalism in the Digital Information Repertoires of Young Adults