News Creators & Young Audiences

The News Creators project explores how young people engage with news creators on social media, and what happens when journalists, creators and young people co-create news together. The project examines how news media can remain relevant and trusted in a changing information landscape, and what editorial media can learn from what resonates with young audiences while maintaining journalistic values.

BACKGROUND

The idea of what counts as news is becoming more fluid among younger generations. On social platforms, politics, lifestyle, personal reflections, and breaking news blend into one continuous stream, expanding both what news can be, and who can be a news provider. In this landscape, news creators (sometimes called news influencers) have become increasingly influential. They share information, opinions, and perspectives on current events directly on social media, shaping how young people encounter and engage with news and societal issues. At the same time, creators often work outside newsroom structures, where accountability mechanisms and standards can be less clear, raising new questions about credibility and trust.

WHAT WE DID

The work consists of two main parts: participatory research with young people and a co-creation experiment with journalists, creators and young people.

Part 1: Research with young audiences

During the summer and autumn 2025, we worked with 15 participants aged 15-28 (average age 21) in and around Stockholm. The research process invited participants to share creator content from their social media feeds. We also held interviews where we analysed the shared content together with the participants. In total, participants shared 175 posts from TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Snapchat. 

Part 2: News co-creation experiment

The co-creation experiment brought together a small group of journalists, creators and  young people, to explore whether news could be made more relevant and engaging for younger audiences through co-creation. Participants worked in three mixed teams over three consecutive evenings in October 2025. The experiment was anchored in a live-broadcast political debate on Swedish public service television (SVT), featuring party leaders from the eight parties represented in the Swedish national parliament. Using the debate as a starting point, participants unpacked the content, identified newsworthy angles, and developed short-form news concepts. Each team produced one news video with a specific focus on relevance and engagement for younger audiences.

The videos were later shown to a separate test group of young people for feedback. Participants included in the co-creation experiment:

• Danny Lam, Creator

• Pimpiina (Pim) Mountain, Creator

• Max Sundblad, Creator

• Lisa Horn, Journalist, Video Reporter

• Oskar Forsberg, Journalist, Breaking Reporter

• Johannes Cakar, Journalist, Social Media Editor

• Esra Pektas, Young co-creator

• Eyobed Zegeye, Young co-creator

• Molly Zachrisson, Young co-creator

• Oluchi Anochiam, Young co-creator

Participants in the co-creation experiment

PROJECT OUTCOME

The project resulted in a report titled News Creators & Young Audiences. The report outlines the methods used, presents key insights, and highlights questions for news organisations navigating a creator-led information landscape. Below is a short version of selected key findings. 

Selected findings from the research 

1. There is a diverse ecosystem of creators in young people’s feeds Young people’s feeds include a wide range of creator types: familiar faces that feel personal, educators and experts, news-like producers, political commentators, and niche or local sense-makers. These categories are fluid and sometimes overlap. The relevance of a creator is tied to how well they can translate issues in ways that feel engaging and understandable for people.

2. Trusted creators are seen as authentic, consistent, and transparent Creators build trust by appearing genuine, sharing personal experiences, and maintaining a consistent personal brand over time. Shared values are an important part of why some young people like a certain creator, but overly polarised or simplistic messages can also undermine trust. Many people appreciate when creators show their sources, correct mistakes openly, and acknowledge uncertainty.

3. Engagement is mostly passive, but creators can inspire meaning and action Most young people consume creator content passively and rarely participate in comment section discussions, even though they like observing them. However, creators play a key role in directing attention toward overlooked topics, shaping interpretation, and motivating private discussion or concrete actions such as sharing content, changing habits, or engaging politically.

4. Creators and news media play different but complementary roles Creators are often perceived as faster, more relatable, and more emotionally engaging, while editorial media are associated with verification, depth, and higher ethical responsibility. Young people frequently move between the two, using creators for discovery and sense-making, and news media for confirmation and context. They believe the two can learn from each other to reach young audiences.
   

Selected findings from the co-creation experiment

The co-creation experiment generated insights into both how young people perceived the news content produced and the collaboration dynamics between journalists, creators, and young people. A selection of these insights is outlined below.

1. Journalistic norms shaped the collaboration Although the collaboration included creator and young perspectives, the criteria for what counted as “real news” remained largely grounded in journalistic norms such as objectivity, balance, and fact-checking. These norms strengthened perceptions of legitimacy and accuracy, they also narrowed the range of formats, tones, and angles explored during the collaboration.
   

2. Expectations and group composition influenced both process and output Differences in expectations around tone, pace, and news value shaped both discussions and final outputs. Some journalists felt the content lacked sufficient editorial weight, while some creators felt it was not fully aligned with their social platforms or audience expectations. The level of alignment within groups was also reflected in the content produced: groups with more varied viewpoints emphasised balance across perspectives, whereas more aligned groups showcased a narrower range of views.
   

3. Co-created news content felt relevant and credible Feedback from a test group showed that trust increased when co-produced news content featured familiar faces, recognisable formats, clear visual evidence (such as directly showing sources within the videos), and visible journalistic involvement. Diversity and representation in the videos, as well as transparency about the collaboration between journalists, creators and young people made the content feel both credible and more relevant.

TEAM

Belenn Bekele, Project Manager, IN/LAB Molly Müller, Community Research Manager, IN/LAB

STEERING COMMITTEE

Kjersti Løken Stavrum, CEO, Tinius Trust Johan Silfversten Bergman, Head of Editorial Growth, Svenska Dagbladet Martin Schori, Head of AI and Innovation & Deputy Editor-in-Chief, Aftonbladet Rolf Sønstelie, Editor and Project Lead for VG-X, Verdens Gang

LINKS

Read the full report: News Creators & Young Audiences.