Swiss Alarm: 56.5 Percent Deem Fake News as Major Social Problem
(MENAFN) More than half of people surveyed in Switzerland now regard disinformation as a “major” social problem, according to a study released on Monday.
The findings appear in the University of Zurich’s Research Centre for the Public Sphere and Society 2026 Quality of the Media Yearbook, a news outlet reported.
Some 56.5% of participants view “fake news as a major social problem,” the report said, a share it described as a “significant” jump from five years ago.
Exposure to false content is routine. More than half of respondents said they regularly come across misleading information, most often on social media, video-sharing platforms and artificial intelligence chatbots.
The study also flagged a large group at risk. About 42% of respondents were classified as “news-deprived,” meaning they rarely follow current affairs or depend on fragmented information from social media, which leaves them more open to conspiracy theories. Researchers found that relying solely on platforms such as TikTok and Instagram gave no more protection against conspiracy theories than avoiding the news entirely.
Overall news quality held steady in 2025, but media diversity slipped. Only 44.7% of national political coverage appeared across several German-language publications. Meanwhile, 57.7% of respondents rated public broadcasting as important or very important.
The financial gap is widening. Technology platforms took in as much as 2.5 billion Swiss francs ($3 billion) in annual advertising revenue, while domestic media revenues dropped to 1.94 billion francs ($2.3 billion).
The researchers urged countermeasures, including media vouchers for young adults.
The findings appear in the University of Zurich’s Research Centre for the Public Sphere and Society 2026 Quality of the Media Yearbook, a news outlet reported.
Some 56.5% of participants view “fake news as a major social problem,” the report said, a share it described as a “significant” jump from five years ago.
Exposure to false content is routine. More than half of respondents said they regularly come across misleading information, most often on social media, video-sharing platforms and artificial intelligence chatbots.
The study also flagged a large group at risk. About 42% of respondents were classified as “news-deprived,” meaning they rarely follow current affairs or depend on fragmented information from social media, which leaves them more open to conspiracy theories. Researchers found that relying solely on platforms such as TikTok and Instagram gave no more protection against conspiracy theories than avoiding the news entirely.
Overall news quality held steady in 2025, but media diversity slipped. Only 44.7% of national political coverage appeared across several German-language publications. Meanwhile, 57.7% of respondents rated public broadcasting as important or very important.
The financial gap is widening. Technology platforms took in as much as 2.5 billion Swiss francs ($3 billion) in annual advertising revenue, while domestic media revenues dropped to 1.94 billion francs ($2.3 billion).
The researchers urged countermeasures, including media vouchers for young adults.
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