Digiday+ Research: Publishers identify the top trends among Gen Z readers

Last year, Digiday+ Research looked at the emerging trends in Gen Z news consumption in a detailed report. In the second quarter of this year, we checked in with publishers to see how many of those trends still stand, and how many of those born between 1997 and 2012 publishers can count among their readers.

Digiday’s survey found that Gen Z makes up a very small percentage of publishers’ readership as of Q2 2025. Seventy-one percent of publisher pros told Digiday that Gen Z makes up between 0% and 25% of their audience — admittedly a bit disheartening.

Fewer than a third of publishers (29%) said that Gen Z accounts for more than a quarter of their readership. Specifically, 17% of publisher pros told Digiday that Gen Z readers make up between 26% and 50% of their audience, 10% said 51% to 75% of their audience is Gen Z readers, and just 2% said Gen Zers account for 76% to 100% of their audience.

In terms of how Gen Z consumes news, Digiday’s survey found that the group’s tendency to expect news anytime, anywhere is the most important trend identified by publishers. Nearly two-thirds of publisher pros (61%) told Digiday in Q2 that Gen Z readers consuming news whenever they want, however they want is a trend that is still applicable for their audience.

Meanwhile, more than half of publishers said that social media’s role in delivering breaking news and covering topics that relate directly to Gen Z are still important trends for readers in this age group. Fifty-five percent of publisher pros said that Gen Z readers’ discovery of breaking news on social media first is still a trend among their audience this year. And 53% said that Gen Z readers are still the most interested in news that relates to them.

Publishers’ presence on TikTok is another important trend this year, Digiday’s survey found. Forty-two percent of publisher pros said in Q2 that they’re becoming more active on the social media platform this year — a trend led by their Gen Z audience.

Nearly a quarter of publishers (21%) identified the following trends as still relevant to their Gen Z audience: Gen Z readers verify information that they see on social media and other sources not traditionally used for news through traditional news sources (which is good news for publishers). They also engage with news content in comment sections. And (not so good news) publishers still struggle to monetize podcasts — a big channel among the Gen Z audience.

All in all, while these trends are likely indicative of the future of news consumption as members of Gen Z continue to get older, publishers still have a ways to go when it comes to building this younger generation into their readership. As a comment from a publisher respondent summed it up, they’re not sure exactly about which news consumption trends are relevant among Gen Z because that group makes up such a small proportion of their audience.