What News Sources Do We Actually Trust?
Media Consumption Patterns in a Divided World
In an increasingly polarised world, we tend to make somewhat extreme assumptions about how divided our behaviours must be. But in reality, there are significant grey areas when it comes to the media consumption patterns of South African mid- to top-income earners.
BrandMapp is South Africa’s largest survey of the country’s tax-paying base, drawing data every year from more than 35 000 adults living in households with a monthly income of R10k+. Spanning Gen Z to Boomers and older, BrandMapp’s insights reveal that traditional media continues to hold ground in the face of digital media offerings.
Traditional Media Still Leading
- DStv (63%) remains more popular than Netflix (58%)
- SABC (33%) still edges out daily YouTube viewers (31%)
“What we must bear in mind is that legacy media is not necessarily so ‘traditional’ anymore,” says Brandon de Kock, Director of Storytelling at BrandMapp.
He explains that digital transformation means top legacy news titles are now accessible across multiple platforms, giving them an edge as long-lived, reliable brands. However, paid news subscriptions remain very low in South Africa – just 8%.
Where South Africans Get Their News
- 43% read free news online
- 40% listen to radio news
- 35% still watch traditional TV news
- 20% get news from TikTok
- 21% from YouTube
- 19% from X (Twitter) and Instagram
“Even then,” De Kock adds, “this is not an indication that social media users are getting their news from some other kind of ‘new’ news sources, because they could very well just be following their trusted legacy brand’s social accounts.”
He notes that the lines between traditional and digital news sources are increasingly blurred.
Generational Differences in News Consumption
“This up-and-coming generation are just as likely to be engaging with legacy news brands as they are finding different news sources via social media,” says De Kock.
BrandMapp shows that 50% of the consumer class still prefers traditional news brands, whether online or in print.
Trust in Media Is Declining - But Legacy Still Leads
- TV news trust: from 49% to 39%
- Radio news trust: from 49% to 44%
- Newspaper trust: from 37% to 33%
- YouTube: 26%
- Twitter (X): 15%
- Instagram: 16%
- Facebook: 16%
Even Digital Natives Trust Legacy Sources
“When we put the generational filter on the BrandMapp data,” says De Kock, “we see that while 32% of Gen Z say they trust news on YouTube, 38% trust legacy TV news and 33% trust radio news.
So, even our purest generation of digital natives are looking to legacy brands and platforms when they are looking for truth.”
Want to Know More?
For customised insights into your industry or audience segment, chat to the BrandMapp team about accessing more detailed data and tailored reports.
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