Internet Top Source for News in Japan, But Not Most Trusted

Most Japanese prefer to check daily news online, but trust in sources lags behind national broadcaster NHK and newspapers.

Newspaper Subscription Rate Down to 50%

The monthly newspaper subscription rate among Japanese households continues to fall, according to a survey conducted by Japan Press Research Institute. As of 2025, it stands at 50.1%, having dropped 3.7 percentage points year on year. The current figure is almost 40 points lower than in fiscal 2008, the first year the survey was carried out, when the rate was 88.6%.

The survey was conducted door to door from July to August 2025. To avoid bias toward users of specific media, a random sample of 5,000 people across the country aged 18 and above was selected using the Basic Resident Register, and 2,665 responses were received.

A total of 40.7% of respondents said they intended to continue to subscribe to print newspapers, marking a considerable decline from 58.5% recorded in the fiscal 2018 survey. Meanwhile, 29.3% said that free access to newspapers, such as at libraries or online, was sufficient, and 15.9% said that they would not read a newspaper, even if it was free.

Percentage of People with Monthly Newspaper Subscriptions

When it came to accessing news daily, 46.5% of respondents said they checked online every day, followed by 46.1% for commercial television, 35.8% for public broadcaster NHK, 33.4% for newspapers, and 9.2% for radio. However, when asked to rate how much they trust information from various types of media on a scale of 100 points, respondents gave NHK the highest grade with 66.8 points, marginally ahead of newspapers with 66.2. While online news was the most commonly accessed source, its trust rating was at 47.4, down 1.1 points year on year as part of a long-term decline.

Level of Trust in Different Types of Media

Concerning the use of the internet and social media in election campaigning, 56.8% thought that it had a positive or somewhat positive effect on Japanese politics, while 39.6% who thought that it had a negative or somewhat negative effect.

However, only 28.0% agreed with the statement, “You can understand social realities better through social media than through the mass media,” compared with 57.6% who disagreed with it.

The Impact of Online Campaigning on Japanese Politics

Do you agree with the statement, “You can understand social realities better through social media than through the mass media”?

Data Sources

Media survey (Japanese) from Japan Press Research Institute.