Generative AI is emerging as an important part of the Australian news ecosystem.

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In this year's Digital News Report: Australia 2026, nearly one in 10 Australians (9 per cent) report using tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini, or Perplexity to get their news, which is broadly in line with the global average (9 per cent).

Only 19 per cent of Australians say they trust news they find on AI chatbots, which is much lower than the trust in news in general (43 per cent). Picture by Shutterstock

More Australians are turning to Gen AI tools not just to find news, but to make sense of it by getting summaries, asking follow-up questions, and to explain complex issues in plain language.

This shift matters because generative AI is not just another distribution channel.

It is becoming a crucial intermediary that sits between news publishers and audiences, shaping what people see, how they interpret it, and whether they engage further.

However, the spread of AI is uneven across demographics. Since last year, the use of AI news almost doubled among major city residents while it remained the same among regional audiences, widening the urban-regional divide.

AI news consumption remains higher among young people (18-24, 16 per cent; 25-34, 18 per cent) and those with high education (15 per cent). News subscribers are also more likely to access news on AI chatbots, as well as those who have high interest in news and politics.

Trust also plays a central role. People who trust news, especially from AI chatbots, are much more likely to use these tools.

When asked how they use AI chatbots for news, people say they ask follow-up questions (49 per cent) or get news summaries (45 per cent). They also turn to chatbots to make news easier to understand and to help explain complex issues.

The pattern of use is significantly different to when people seek news on search engines or on social media.

Only 38 per cent of AI news users say they click through to the original source, compared to 45 per cent when they find search results on Google.

The reasons why they might click on the links are also different. On search engines, people click through to get more detailed information. But on AI platforms, they click through to verify information.

This means that AI platforms are absorbing people's attention rather than redirecting it.

Publishers have been worried about AI summaries that take away a lot of referral traffic from search engines.

Professor Sora Park, lead author of the Digital News Report: Australia 2026, is director of the News & Media Research Centre at the University of Canberra. Picture supplied

Nevertheless, trust is very low on these platforms. Only 19 per cent of audiences say they trust news they see on AI platforms. This is much lower than the trust in news in general (43 per cent). In fact, half (49 per cent) of Australians do not trust news they find on AI chatbots.

As audiences shift toward consuming AI-generated summaries instead of original reporting, ensuring the accuracy, transparency, and integrity of those summaries becomes essential. And we know that AI platforms lack all of these. A recent EU report found that 45% of all AI responses had at least one significant issue, and 81 per cent had an issue of some form.

This challenge is compounded by the critical gap in audiences' capabilities. Media literacy has long been uneven and AI literacy is even lower.

Many Australians are not fully equipped to evaluate bias, detect misinformation, or understand how algorithms work.

It is no surprise that Australia has the highest concern globally about misinformation and concern has grown continuously in the past decade. Now 77 per cent of Australians say they are concerned about online misinformation.

This year, for the first time, social media has become the main gateway to online news surpassing direct visits to news websites or apps. As more people access news through third-party platforms, they are increasingly relying on opaque platform algorithms.

In this context, leaving the development of AI-mediated news entirely to market forces is not a viable option. The stakes are too high, not just for the sustainability of journalism, but for the quality of the information that we are accessing.

We can't leave a handful of large global platforms to mediate what people access, know, and believe. The government must establish clear standards for transparency in AI-generated content, including source labelling and disclosure of how summaries are produced.

On the other hand, we also need to invest in a healthy news ecosystem where public interest journalism can be best produced and reach audiences.

Support for media and AI literacy initiatives can help Australians better navigate this rapidly changing information landscape.

None of this is simple. The pace of technological change is fast, and the global nature of AI development complicates regulation at a national level.

AI will continue to transform how Australians access news. The challenge is to establish governance that ensures it serves the public interest.

• Sora Park is professor of communication and director of the News & Media Research Centre at the University of Canberra. Read the full Digital News Report: Australia 2026 here