Top News Sources

Between March 2021 and May 2025, Americans increasingly shifted their primary news consumption from traditional TV to online sources, particularly social media. This trend is most pronounced among the 'Concerned' and 'Alarmed' segments of the public, raising concerns about the spread of climate misinformation on platforms with less regulatory oversight.

• As of May 2025, social media is the most important news source for Americans, cited by 19% of respondents, representing a 7 percentage point increase since March 2021. Conversely, local TV news saw a 4 point decrease, with 18% of Americans identifying it as their most important source in 2025.
• The 'Concerned' segment experienced the most significant shift in news consumption; the proportion identifying social media as their top source rose from 11% in 2021 to 21% in 2025, while those prioritizing local TV news dropped from 26% to 16% over the same period.
• The shift toward social media is particularly challenging for climate communication because online misinformation is evolving from denying climate change exists to claiming that climate solutions are ineffective, targeting the 'Alarmed' and 'Concerned' groups who are most interested in these topics.
• Social media platforms are identified as more vulnerable to misinformation than traditional media due to a lack of regulatory and legal accountability, a problem exacerbated by the emergence of generative AI.

APA

Yale Program on Climate Change Communication (2025). Top News Sources. https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/top-news-sources/

Chicago

Yale Program on Climate Change Communication. Top News Sources. 2025. https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/top-news-sources/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Yale Program on Climate Change Communication |title=Top News Sources |date=9 October 2025 |url=https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/top-news-sources/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{yaleprogramonclimatechangecommunication2025top, author = {{Yale Program on Climate Change Communication}}, title = {{Top News Sources}}, institution = {Yale Program on Climate Change Communication}, year = {2025}, month = oct, url = {https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/top-news-sources/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }