Content made by creators and influencers on social media platforms will generate more ad revenue than traditional media outlets for the first time this year, according to new research by WPP Media.
Earnings from user-generated content through ads, brand deals and sponsorships is expected to grow by 20% year on year to $169.6bn (£126.3bn) globally in 2025.
Creator-generated revenue is forecast to more than double across platforms like Tiktok, Youtube, Kuaishou in China and Instagram Reels to $367.6bn (£278.3bn) by 2030.
“I don’t really believe in tipping points,” Professor Charlie Beckett from the London School of Economics (LSE) told Press Gazette. “But if anyone hasn’t realised influencers are very successful, they don’t deserve to be in the business.”
Beckett said many traditional media outlets have been sluggish in their response to the tidal wave of individual-led social media content. “They’ve been somewhat slow to understand how attractive it is.”
He added: “Influencers understand platforms, algorithms, the tricks of the trade. More importantly, they understand their audiences. They genuinely care, or give the impression they do, about their topics, whether beauty, travel or climate change, and they work hard.”
Beckett stressed that the influencers of today are in “direct conflict” with legacy media, particularly over day-to-day lifestyle verticals.
Journalists, he added, are only just starting to embrace the emotional engagement that also defines creator content.
‘Influencers are more effective because people identify with them’
Beckett pointed to research carried out by LSE in 2022, which explored what journalists could learn from influencers.
“It was clear then that influencers are more effective because people identify with them, particularly younger people. They like to have media that is personal, someone they can have a relationship with, or feel that they have anyway.”
For Oli Dugmore, editor of digital outlet Joe.co.uk, creators surpassing legacy outlets was inevitable. “It’s not a surprise. The crossover was bound to happen,” he told Press Gazette.
The latest Digital News Report from the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism published this week found that the Politics Joe podcast was the third most mentioned among weekly news podcast listeners (behind Goalhanger’s The Rest Is Politics and Global’s The News Agents).
Last year Politics Joe was cited as the fifth most mentioned UK newsbrand behind the BBC, Sky, The Guardian and ITV News.
“What’s the biggest streaming platform by hours? Youtube. Think Mr Beast,” Dugmore said. Jimmy Donaldson, aka Mr Beast, had 3.1 billion views in December 2024.
“There are streaming services that would kill for that level of attention and audience interaction,” Dugmore said, noting audiences now tend to gravitate to personality-driven media.
He added: “If you want fashion advice, are you going to a brand page like Uniqlo or Urban Outfitters? Or are you going to find an influencer whose style you like? Usually, it’s the latter. I can’t see why trend towards individual influencers wouldn’t be the same for news.”
Dugmore noted how Substack is booming for certain creators as audiences find a journalist they agree with, rather than an institution under whose umbrella they may once have fit.
What does this mean for journalism, and in particular public interest stories and investigative reporting?
Beckett recalled a conversation with former Guardian editor Alan Rusbridger about the value of investigative journalism.
“The traffic, the reading figures, for their big investigations were pretty small,” Beckett said, “yet when they asked why subscribers paid for The Guardian, they consistently cited the investigative work as a key reason.”
Even if it struggles to compete with influencers for engagement, Beckett said the brand value and public service role of traditional journalism remains essential. He emphasised the power of a media brand to “cross-subsidise” different types of content, allowing serious investigative reporting to be sustained even if it attracts a niche audience.
He also pointed to the difference in advertising value, noting that with a publisher like The Guardian, “you’re advertising for the whole brand,” which carries reliability and a particular profile, unlike advertising with individual influencers, which can be more risky.
Publishers ‘need to be in everything’, and humour helps too
Many traditional news organisations have already adapted by embracing new formats and technologies and revenue sources, from AI-driven personalised content, Tiktok videos and podcasts to subscriptions, events, premium services and B2B publishing.
But as Beckett pointed out, subscriptions alone won’t pay the bills, especially among younger audiences who prioritise entertainment and tech services over news.
“They need to be in everything,” he said. He recalled starting his career at the recently-closed South London Press and the seaside coach trips they put on for readers.
“I’m not saying bring back coaches to the seaside, but they have to think much more about how they can be part of their readers’ lives in a way that readers are happy to pay for.
Dugmore said: “I think today the modern journalist, to be effective, needs within their toolkit some component of multimedia, at least one – video, audio, preferably both, as well as the ability to edit and share their content on social media effectively.”
Including a bit of light-heartedness and humour, such as that included by Joe, can go a long way, he added.
“It’s the thin end of the wedge. I’m not prepared to settle for boring journalism… Entertainment has always been a part of what we do, and we have a tendency as journalists to speak in quite sombre tones…
“But you have to make people want to read your stuff. It’s not good enough to say ‘this is really important’. It’s like saying to people to eat your vegetables, take your medicine. So yeah, [humour] is massively important.”
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