Nearly half of Switzerland’s population now counts as “news-deprived”—people who rarely consume journalistic media. According to the latest Yearbook on Media Quality from the University of Zurich’s Research Center for the Public Sphere and Society, 46% of Swiss fall into this category, the highest level since records began.
Switzerland’s public sphere is undergoing a new phase of digital disruption. After the upheaval wrought by social networks and search engines, artificial intelligence (AI) is now redrawing the boundaries of how information is produced, distributed and consumed. The consequences are profound—for journalism, media firms and the public alike.
AI is transforming newsroom routines, altering the flow of information on digital platforms and reshaping how audiences encounter news. Even technology giants are feeling the pressure: search engines and social networks are embedding AI tools or acquiring providers to defend market share. Power and control in the public sphere are shifting once again, with implications for democratic debate.
Swiss journalism still fares well by international standards. Swiss media are of good quality and relatively resilient to disinformation, says Mark Eisenegger, who heads the research centre. When falsehoods circulate, journalists tend to identify and correct them quickly. Yet, he warns, shrinking budgets have eroded diversity and depth of coverage.
The growing reliance on social media for news has left many citizens less informed about politics. Those who rely mainly on platforms such as Instagram or TikTok know less about current issues, including elections. Simply consuming social media is not enough, according to Eisenegger. The level of knowledge is much deeper among traditional news users.
The findings challenge some assumptions. Heavy news consumers who combine social media with journalism are not necessarily the best informed; that distinction still belongs to readers and viewers of traditional outlets such as radio, television and newspapers.
Eighteen percent of young adults now use AI chatbots like ChatGPT to obtain news. Chatbots have a relatively high error rate and rely heavily on the reporting of journalists, whose work they profit from without contributing to it.
Why, then, are people turning away from news? Some actively avoid it, overwhelmed by its negativity and complexity. Others simply substitute it with entertainment. People prefer to watch a Netflix series rather than a news programme. The shift to constant smartphone use has also blurred the line between journalism and influencer content.
Media power, concentrated
Media ownership in Switzerland remains heavily concentrated. A handful of firms control most major outlets, particularly those with the widest reach. In German-speaking Switzerland, the three largest groups—TX Group (27.6%), SRG SSR (26.7%) and CH Media (20.3%)—command a combined market share of 74.6% of total users. Concentration is even starker in Romandy: TX Group (45%), SRG SSR (32.4%) and Stiftung Aventinus, owner of Le Temps and Heidi News (9.9%), together account for 87.3%.
The implications for democracy are troubling. News-deprived citizens vote less often, trust politics and the media less, and identify less with democratic values. They are more susceptible to a democracy driven by sentiment—to decisions based on gut feeling rather than knowledge.
More on this:
Yearbook on Media Quality (in English)
For more stories like this on Switzerland follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
Leave a Reply