News consumption in South Korea - statistics & facts

Around 66 percent of South Koreans were reading the news in 2021. Among those who do read the news, nearly 93 percent reported reading online newspapers, a figure that has risen over the previous decade, in contrast to the readership of printed newspapers. The most trusted news brand as of 2023 was MBC News, pulling ahead of YTN, which was the country's first 24-hour news channel.

Low trust among consumers

Historically, South Korea has suffered from decades of media censorship. Therefore, it is not surprising that South Koreans are still rather suspicious despite the country’s democratization. In a 2023 study conducted across 40 countries, South Korea ranked low when it came to trust in news, with only around 28 percent of respondents stating they trusted the news. The level of trust in news on social media was lower, with only around 21 percent of respondents trusting news on social media in 2021.

Online news sources

Despite the low level of trust of news on social media, around 53 percent of respondents used YouTube as a news source. Consuming news online has become common among news readers. According to a governmental survey, around 93 percent of news readers read online newspapers. Meanwhile, only about 11 percent of South Koreans were willing to pay for their digital news.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Statista Research Department, Jun 18, 2024

Key insights

Leading source of news
Online
Most accessed online news brand
Naver
Most accessed offline news brand
KBS News
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Current statistics on this topic

Most trusted news brands in South Korea as of February 2024

News Industry

Highly trusted news brands in South Korea 2024

Share of South Koreans who used YouTube for news as of February 2024, by age group

News Industry

YouTube usage for news South Korea 2024, by age

Share of South Koreans who used X (formerly Twitter) for news as of February 2024, by age group

News Industry

X (Twitter) usage for news South Korea 2024, by age

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Overview

5

Overview

News access

5

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News brands

4

News brands

News on social media

5

News on social media

Paying for news

4

Paying for news

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Social media usage in South Korea
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