A detailed study of more than 86,000 Facebook posts sharing news stories has found Australians now share content from a much wider range of platforms than in the past, leading to greater diversity in the news reaching the community.
It also warns that Meta’s intention to deprioritise news on their platforms could reverse this trend and weaken the media’s role in democratic participation.
The recent study, led by University of South Australia lecturer Cameron McTernan, examined posts from Australian print, digital, and TV newsrooms from 2010 to 2022.
With over 16 million active Australian users, Facebook hosts the largest local audience of any social platform.
Over the 12 years studied, Australians increasingly shared news from a far greater variety of outlets.
“In the first few years sampled, the three leading news pages on Facebook were ABC News, 9News, and news.com.au,” McTernan said.
“However, newer entrants like Daily Mail Australia and Sky News have since become highly popular.”
Newspapers shared the greatest number of posts (56 percent), followed by digital news platforms contributing 37 percent, and television 7 percent.
The type of content shared by print and digital news outlets was overwhelmingly local, while TV had a stronger metropolitan and national focus.
Diversity Brings Social and Economic Benefits
Greater diversity among news sources “has both an economic and democratic value for society,” the report said. High concentration of media ownership can raise concerns for both regulators and the public.
“This includes declining competition, monopolies, and the potential for media companies and governments to develop ‘cozy,’ undemocratic relationships,” a particular concern for Australia, long understood as one of the most concentrated media markets in the world.
Public submissions to the 2021 Senate Inquiry into Media Diversity revealed that many Australians feel the media does not meet their needs, citing a lack of diverse content, political bias, and declining community engagement.
McTernan said the study shows potential for new players to thrive on platforms like Facebook.
“While Australia has long seen a decline in newsrooms and concentration in ownership, the results of this study show the potential for new entrants to succeed on a distributed access platform like Facebook,” McTernan said.
However, he noted that many of the newer entrants in the data, such as Sky News and Daily Mail, were already well-established and well-funded media outlets.
Social Media Expands Access but Undermines Revenue
McTernan, who specialises in social media, political communication, and media industries, says social media platforms have become a double-edged sword for the news economy.
“While social media can provide better discoverability of news, it also competes with traditional outlets for revenue,” McTernan said.
“The two competing industries are struggling to find a cooperative path forward, and ultimately, that hurts newsrooms a lot more than tech firms, and ultimately, it hurts all of us.”
More diverse news exposure, he added, helps people make better decisions.
“Exposing the community to more diverse news sources benefits tolerance, encourages people to challenge biases, and ultimately informs better decision-making and a more inclusive world,” he said.
“A viable media industry is also vital for supporting the economy and fulfilling a crucial role in democratic societies, including through its own contributions on social media.”
The situation worsened last year when Meta’s agreements under Australia’s News Media Bargaining Code expired, and the owner of Facebook and Instagram said it would no longer pay for news. This costs the local industry an estimated $70 million a year.
In response, the federal government announced a News Bargaining Incentive designed to encourage platforms like Meta to contribute to the sustainability of Australian news. A public consultation process is expected to begin soon.
McTernan said that while this shows governments are supporting newsrooms, there is still a lack of quality data on the diversity of news content on digital platforms.
“The goal of my research was to understand whether Australian news on Facebook is truly diverse or dominated by a few big companies,” he said.
“Australia has one of the most concentrated media markets in the world, so it was important to understand the scale, scope, and structure of its social media news market, to help inform conversations and negotiations in this complex space.”
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