MANILA, Philippines — Local current events consumption has completely solidified around third-party digital networks, far outpacing global averages.The local release of the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism’s annual report reveals that social media remains the absolute dominant gateway for news in the Philippines.
The data shows that traditional media platforms like print and television are experiencing an aggressive decline within the local market.
According to the report, an overwhelming 85 percent of Filipino respondents state they systematically consume their news online through websites, standalone mobile applications, video networks, podcasts, or generative AI chatbots:
[ PHILIPPINE NEWS DOMINANCE INDEX ]
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┌───────────────────────────────────┴───────────────────────────────────┐
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[ THE PLATFORM LEADERS ] [ THE LEGACY COLLAPSE ]
• **70% Social Media Monopoly:** Seven out of 10 Filipinos pull their• **42% Television News:** Traditional broadcast TV experienced the
weekly news directly from social platform feeds, up slightly from • sharpest drop in local media history, falling from 66% in 2020.
68 percent in 2020. • **10% Print Media:** Physical newspapers have shrunk into a strict
• **72% Facebook Dominance:** Meta's flagship network remains the top• niche market, plummeting from a 22 percent consumption share
news source in the country, rising from 65 percent last year. • over the same six-year block.
Yvonne Chua, an associate professor of journalism at the University of the Philippines (UP) who authored the Digital News Report’s country page for the Philippines, noted that the stable, heavy reliance on social networks means more citizens are encountering journalism through algorithmic platform feeds shaped by high polarization, political messaging, and active disinformation.
The report highlights a clear layout of platform choices and a major shift toward independent content creators:
[ LOCAL SOCIAL PLATFORM NEWS MARKET SHARE ] ■ Facebook: 72% ■ YouTube: 48% ■ TikTok: 33% ■ FB Messenger: 33% ■ Instagram: 15% ■ X (Twitter): 9%
Parallel to platform choice, 36 percent of local users now consume information from independent digital content creators or online influencers whose primary focus is news delivery. Furthermore, 46 percent say they consume current events updates from lifestyle or entertainment creators who occasionally talk about national news.
The most alarming metric within the local study is a severe drop in institutional trust. While the global average for news trust sits at 37 percent, overall trust in news in the Philippines fell sharply to just 28 percent this year—a massive drop from 38 percent recorded last year.
Despite the trust crisis, the study tracked individual brand trust metrics among select established media organizations operating in the country:
| Media Brand | Trust Percentage | Distrust / Neutral Share |
| GMA Network | 66% | 34% |
| INQUIRER | 61% | 39% |
| ABS-CBN | 60% | 40% |
| DZMM Radyo Patrol | 60% | 40% |
| The Philippine STAR | 59% | 41% |
| TV5 / OnePH | 59% | 41% |
| Manila Bulletin | 59% | 41% |
| Super Radyo DZBB | 58% | 42% |
Note: The Reuters Institute clarified that this internal brand trust index should not be treated as an exhaustive or definitive list of the absolute most or least trusted brands in the market, as the survey tracking pool remains non-exhaustive.
At the bottom of the monitored list, alternative digital news site Rappler and tabloid brand Abante tied at 46 percent brand trust among the survey respondents. The data emphasizes that as audiences shift away from traditional media boundaries, rebuilding trust inside an algorithmically driven, creator-heavy ecosystem remains the ultimate challenge for the country’s professional journalistic institutions.