Ad spend on news content is falling across the board. Despite high audience interest, serious news stories are frequently demonetized due to keyword blocklists deployed by brands concerned by reputational risk. As brands avoid placing ads alongside content deemed controversial or distressing, they are favoring softer content like sport and lifestyle over “hard” news.
Only 3.7% of total UK TV ad spend was allocated to news programming in 2024, per Nielsen. In the US, pharma brands have become increasingly integral for news broadcasters, accounting for 12% of national TV ad sales.
User generated content set to overtake professional media in ad spend by 2026
The difficulties facing news media come at a time when advertisers increasingly favor user generated content (UGC) from influencers and creators, which offer low production costs, direct audience engagement, and alignment with platform algorithms.
Traditional media, which invests upfront in journalism and operates under stricter content standards and to tighter regulations, has struggled to compete. This shift is particularly damaging to the ad-funded news industry, which has long warned that shrinking investment in professional journalism risks a decline in civic literacy, and weaker defenses against disinformation.
By next year, professionally produced content is forecast to account for less than half of content-driven ad spend, according to GroupM. Platforms like TikTok and podcasts are fueling the rise of creator-journalists, as is the rise of AI-generated content which also accelerates this trend.
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