The future of news: Report by the House of Lords Communications and Digital Committee

Approximate read time: 20 minutes

On 25 April 2025, the House of Lords is due to debate a motion in the name of Baroness Stowell of Beeston (Conservative), the former chair of the House of Lords Communications and Digital Committee, to take note of the committee’s report, entitled ‘The future of news’ (25 November 2024).

1. House of Lords Communications and Digital Committee inquiry and report

1.1 Inquiry

In January 2024, the House of Lords Communications and Digital Committee launched an inquiry into the future of news in the UK.^[1] In an article discussing the context of the inquiry, the committee highlighted several concerns about the news media sector. These included:^[2]

• Impartiality. The committee said that there had been growing concerns around the challenges of due impartiality. It noted that the issue was “becoming ever more complex” due to political changes, societal divisions, the prevalence of “opinionated” news content and the variety of stories and alternative perspectives online. It highlighted examples of these challenges, including “coverage of the conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine”.
• Trusted information. The committee noted that public trust in news media remained “in long-term decline”, falling from 51 percent in 2015 to 33 percent in 2023. It also stated that people were accessing news less frequently and becoming “less interested”.
• Technology platforms and business models. The committee stated that advances in large language models had led some media organisations to “voice unease about their industry’s long-term financial sustainability”. It also said that some US technology platforms were “moving away” from news content, which has had significant financial implications for news organisations which have relied on them for audience engagement and revenue.

The committee held 18 oral evidence sessions and received 73 pieces of written evidence.^[3]

1.2 Report

The committee published its report, ‘The future of news’, on 25 November 2024.^[4] The committee acknowledged the strengths of the UK news media sector, emphasising that some audiences were “better served than ever before” and that the sector “offers a healthy variety of viewpoints, broadcasters play an anchoring role, and online outfits are springing up offering unprecedented choice of formats and perspectives”.^[5]

Despite these strengths, the committee expressed concerns about the future of the sector, stating that “many indicators” were “not encouraging”. It noted that “trust has fallen and news avoidance is rising”, while key revenue streams were “declining and will not return”.^[6] The report also drew attention to continued efforts to “silence investigative reporting” and the impact of AI, which was “starting to reshape the nature of internet search and the concept of authoritative information”. Additionally, the committee identified the risk of a “two tier” media environment as a “particular problem”. It warned that although trends indicated that a few large media brands and niche outlets had a “viable financial future”, a growing portion of the population were at risk of “becoming increasingly poorly served” due to challenges such as the “declining economics of mass market journalism”, the proliferation of “unreliable” online sources and the struggles of institutions, such as the BBC, to ensure their reporting accounted for and reflected the “underlying causes of socio-political realignments”.

The committee characterised the government’s role in shaping the future of news as “complex”, warning that it must “avoid a policy of managed decline” while acknowledging that this was “easier said than done”.^[7] The committee emphasised that much of the work needed to be led by industry itself to meet audience needs, while the government’s role was to create conditions that would enable the sector to “stand on its own feet and survive a protracted period of technological turbulence”. It noted that this would require decisions “which will not please everybody”, including the government having to “confront” technology companies and “disappoint” some parts of the media sector.

The committee proposed several recommendations in its report.^[8] These included:

• Supporting local media. The committee suggested that the government review the impact of business rates relief on local newspaper offices and, if found to be beneficial, extend this relief until 2029.^[9] It also recommended that the government launch a consultation before the 2025 summer recess to consider tax breaks for hiring local journalists. Additionally, it proposed that the government sought partnership funding to support recruitment and training schemes for local news as part of its local media strategy.^[10] The committee further advised that the BBC should be tasked with engaging local news providers as strategic partners, including expanding its local democracy reporting service and increasing the allocation of journalists to smaller news outlets.
• Innovation and technology platforms. The committee emphasised the need for media organisations to innovate and “take more risks to transition to long-term sustainable business models”.^[11] It highlighted existing innovation initiatives in the UK and referenced the 2019 ‘Future news pilot fund’ established by the then government. It recommended that the government create a new ‘Future news innovation catalyst scheme’ to “facilitate technology-driven business transformation to help participants improve their long-term financial sustainability”. The committee stated that while the government should fund this scheme, it should be delivered independently, with a small number of recipients to “ensure the available funding can make a meaningful difference”. Concerns were also raised about technology platforms restricting “legitimate” content, such as imposing age restrictions on Ofcom-compliant news or blocking other content.^[12] Therefore, the committee recommended that Ofcom worked with technology platforms “at pace” to “align content moderation policies with Ofcom’s broadcasting codes and the duties contained in the Online Safety Act 2023”. It also called on Ofcom to address “grey areas”, whereby content was not blocked but downranked to minimise user engagement.
• Tackling generative AI. The committee noted that the use of news content to train generative AI had the “potential to reshape the economics of the media industry” and called for “a better framework for governing how this works”.^[13] However, it warned the government against “adopting a flawed opt-out regime comparable to the version operating in the EU” and instead proposed transparency mechanisms to allow rights holders to verify the use of their data. The committee also recommended that the government explore independent regulatory enforcement for non-compliance in its intellectual property consultation. To address these challenges “at pace”, it recommended that the government “dedicate significant technical, policy and political resource”.^[14]
• Addressing competition issues. The committee called on the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to investigate technology firms “leveraging dominance in one domain”, such as internet searches, to “secure anti-competitive advantages in obtaining data for generative AI training”.^[15] It described this as an “immediate priority” given the pace of market developments and their impact on news media business models. The committee also warned that Ofcom’s media plurality framework was “rapidly becoming outdated” and recommended a 12-month deadline for government responses to Ofcom’s priority recommendations on media plurality.^[16] It also noted that Ofcom’s 2021 recommendation to update the media public interest test framework to include online “news creators” had not been implemented by the government, with a consultation launched by the government in November 2024 on implementing this recommendation by amending the definition of “newspaper” in the Enterprise Act 2002 to include online news publications. However, the committee said that the consultation excluded news aggregators and online intermediaries from the updated rules. While the committee welcomed the proposed amendment, it expressed disappointment that a wider update to the regime had not been sought. It described the exclusion of online intermediaries from these amendments as “oddly short sighted” and called for their inclusion in the rules.^[17]
• Public service broadcasters. The committee raised concerns about the BBC’s priorities and spending choices, noting criticism of its efforts to expand online audiences for “crowding out commercial competitors” and changes to radio services that had “reduced unique local programming”.^[18] It described the 2027 ‘BBC charter review’ as an “opportunity to re-examine the BBC’s future, including funding models and its strategic priorities”.
• Tackling mis/disinformation. The committee welcomed efforts to improve trust in the information environment but cautioned against a counter-mis/disinformation strategy that “relies too heavily on measures in the Online Safety Act”, or technical fixes, such as watermarks, labelling and algorithmic tweaking.^[19] Instead, it recommended that the government focus more on strengthening long-term resilience through four priorities:
  • Recognising “more explicitly” the value of a financially sustainable news sector.
  • Engaging with media organisations on protocols for responding to “major foreign interference efforts”, particularly during elections.
  • Adopting a “more muscular deterrence posture to impose greater costs on adversaries”, such as using cyber power to “degrade adversary infrastructure”, potentially as part of the government’s strategic defence review.
  • Developing a media literacy strategy. The committee expressed doubts about the government’s approach and called for increased efforts and resources to “scale ‘what works’ in media literacy and avoid a tangle of short-term fragmented projects”. It also called on the Department for Education to use its curriculum and assessment review to ensure that media literacy was “given more time and prominence in schools”.^[20]
• Tackle strategic lawsuits against journalists. Strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) are legal actions “typically brought by corporations or individuals with the intention of harassing, intimidating and financially or psychologically exhausting opponents via improper use of the legal system”.^[21] The committee noted that in 2023 the then government had amended the then Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill 2023–24 to include some anti-SLAPP protections, although the definition in the legislation was “restricted to economic crime”.^[22] It also highlighted that SLAPPs legislation was “not in the [Labour government’s] King’s Speech”. Therefore, it criticised the government for not prioritising anti-SLAPP legislation, describing this as “troubling” and with “serious potential consequences for press freedom and the future of the news industry”.^[23] It noted that “viable legislative options and precedents exist”, following a government consultation, in 2022 but emphasised that “what is missing now is political will”.^[24] The committee recommended that the government publish draft legislative proposals before the 2025 summer recess to “allow time for proper scrutiny”. It also suggested the government could explore including measures in the Victims, Courts and Public Protection Bill, announced in the 2024 King’s Speech, if necessary.^[25]

2. Government response to the committee’s report

The government published its response to the committee’s report on 27 January 2025.^[26] In its response, the government welcomed the report and acknowledged the importance of the topic, stating:

This is a vital topic, given the role that journalism plays in our democracy, the societal impact of digitalisation and growing concerns about the pollution of our information ecosystem.^[27]

The government said that it agreed with the committee’s “overarching assessment” and affirmed its commitment to “supporting a free, sustainable and plural media landscape”.^[28] It stated that its work to “protect the media landscape” would build on its implementation of legislation passed in the previous parliament, including:

• Online Safety Act 2023. The act introduced safeguards to protect press and media freedom, including “robust” provisions to “ensure people can continue to access diverse news sources online”.
• Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023. The act introduced an early dismissal mechanism for cases meeting the statutory definition of SLAPPs, provided the claimant cannot prove that the claim is likely to succeed. For cases that proceed, a new costs protection regime would be applied.
• Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024. The government stated that the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 was “helping rebalance the relationship between news publishers and dominant online platforms” and was “making a significant contribution to the sustainability of the press”. Additionally, the government said that, separately, the act was “making it clear” that it was “not acceptable” for foreign governments to gain ownership, control, or influence over British newspapers and news magazines.
• Media Act 2024. The government noted that the act was designed to “future-proof” the broadcasting sector, and enable viewers and listeners across the UK to access public service media content as technology changes. The act also repealed section 40 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013, which the government stated would “help ensure our press remains free and independent”.

The government also addressed the committee’s specific recommendations and outlined its actions in response:

• Supporting local media. The government stated that the financial health and sustainability of local journalism was “an area of particular concern for the government” and noted that the secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport had announced plans for a local media strategy.^[29] It acknowledged the expiry of business rates relief on local office space in March 2025 and stated that it was “considering all possible options”, such as financial support through new or existing tax reliefs, “whilst being mindful of the current fiscal climate”. Addressing the committee’s recommendations to expand the local democracy reporting service and increase the proportion of journalists allocated to smaller news outlets, the government explained that such decisions were “largely an operational matter for the BBC” and stated that the forthcoming charter review would be an “important opportunity” to explore the role of the BBC in the local news market.^[30]
• Encouraging innovation. The government said that it was “considering all options” to support local journalists as part of its local media strategy, including the provision of innovation funding.^[31] It also reaffirmed its interest in new technological prototypes, start-ups and innovative revenue generation methods “as a means to sustain the industry as it transitions to digital-first business models”.
• Tackling generative AI. The government noted that, in December 2024, the Intellectual Property Office, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for Science and Innovation launched a ten-week consultation on AI and intellectual property.^[32] The consultation examined issues such as text and data mining, transparency and labelling.^[33] It sought views on proposals to address these issues, including increasing transparency on the use of copyrighted works to train AI models and generate AI content, enabling rights holders to have “greater control” over their material being used to train AI models and supporting remuneration efforts for the use of copyrighted materials. The consultation closed on 25 February 2025, and as of 9 April 2025, the government has yet to publish a response to the consultation.
• Addressing competition issues. The government expressed its commitment to respond to any Ofcom recommendations on media plurality “in a timely way, subject to ensuring we have fully understood the implications of such changes, especially what effect it will have on the industry”.^[34] Addressing the committee’s recommendation to include online news intermediaries into the scope of media ownership rules, the government said that doing so could bring “a very large number of enterprises” into scope, creating a “large burden” on the government, businesses and regulators. Instead, it committed to keeping the policy “under review”.^[35]
• Tackling mis/disinformation. The government addressed the committee’s four priorities for tackling mis/disinformation:
  • Recognising the value of a financially sustainable news sector. The government reiterated its intention to support the financial sustainability of local journalism through its local media strategy.^[36] The government said that this would “complement” its implementation of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, which aimed to “help rebalance the relationship between online platforms and those reliant on their services, including news publishers, thereby making a significant contribution to press sustainability at all levels”.
  • Engaging with media organisations to address foreign interference. The government stated that it took the issue “very seriously” and that it was “well prepared to ensure the integrity and security of UK democratic processes”. It highlighted that it had “robust” systems in place, including the defending democracy taskforce and the joint election security and preparedness unit, both of which had “coordinated effort” across Whitehall, the police, and the intelligence agencies, to “monitor and mitigate risks relating to the security of elections, including the risks of AI and mis/disinformation from hostile state actors”.^[37]
  • Imposing costs on adversaries. The government noted its use of a “full spectrum of diplomatic, economic, political and military capabilities to maintain the UK’s strategic advantage and impose costs on hostile state activity, based on which capabilities offer the best means of achieving UK objectives”.^[38] It highlighted its cyber capabilities, including techniques to counter disinformation and address “sophisticated” cyber threats.
  • Developing a media literacy strategy. The government acknowledged the importance of media literacy and committed to working with Ofcom and the news media sector to address this issue.^[39] It stated that it had allocated “significant” funding for media literacy programmes and that it could set educational standards and integrate media literacy into the national curriculum.
• Addressing strategic lawsuits against journalists. The government stated that the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport convened a taskforce in December 2023 to “coordinate a non-legislative response to SLAPPs which target journalists”.^[40] This included commitments to produce new guidance for journalists, led by the Media Lawyers Association, which would be published in the spring of 2025 and launch a journalists’ safety tracker to report incidents of harassment, abuse and “lawfare” targeting journalists across the UK and Ireland. The government also noted that the civil procedure rule committee was developing new rules to implement anti-SLAPP provisions from the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023. However, it stated that it did not intend to legislate further in the current parliamentary session and was considering lessons learnt from the Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation Bill 2023–24, a private member’s bill, which fell at dissolution, to ensure that an “appropriate balance is struck between the rights to access justice and free speech”.

3. Other responses to the committee’s report

3.1 Ofcom

On 27 January 2025, the chief executive officer of Ofcom, Dame Melanie Dawes, responded to the committee’s report.^[41] She described the report as a “thorough, thoughtful and considered contribution to this important debate”.^[42] She noted that Ofcom had published the first phase of its review into public service media in December 2024, which examined how broadcasters had performed between 2019 and 2023. She stated that Ofcom had said that it had become “more challenging” for public service broadcasters’ news content to “cut through in the crowded online environment, where audiences are more likely to be exposed to misinformation and disinformation”. She also outlined that Ofcom was working on the next phase of the review. Additionally, she noted that although the Media Act 2024, which Ofcom was implementing, had updated the regulatory framework and addressed some issues, “given the pace of change”, Ofcom planned to publish some proposals for consultation in summer 2025.

Dame Melanie also addressed the committee’s recommendations to Ofcom. This included the recommendation for Ofcom to engage with technology platforms “at pace” to “align content moderation policies with Ofcom’s broadcasting codes and the duties contained in the Online Safety Act 2023”.^[43] She explained that the broadcasting code applied to Ofcom- licenced broadcasters, the BBC and S4C. She further clarified that under the 2023 act, Ofcom’s role was to “ensure that services have the appropriate systems and processes to protect people from harm”. However, she emphasised that it was not Ofcom’s role to “take down individual pieces of content or block specific accounts” and that the act did “not place any requirements on online platforms with regard to accuracy, impartiality or offence”. Therefore, she concluded that it would not be “within the scope of our powers as the online safety regulator or the broadcasting regulator to apply the broadcasting code to online services”, though she expressed that she “appreciate[d] where the committee is coming from”.

Addressing the issue of content being “subtly downranked” to minimise engagement, Dame Melanie acknowledged that the “prominence given to news stories on online platforms does have a bearing on their reach”. She noted that some providers of services within the scope of the act had “additional responsibilities to protect recognised news publisher content”. Dame Melanie said that Ofcom planned to consult on its approach to these duties in early 2026.

3.2 Competition and Markets Authority

The CMA published its response to the committee’s report in January 2025.^[44] It addressed the committee’s recommendation to investigate the use of market dominance in areas such as internet searches to “secure anti-competitive advantages” in obtaining data for training generative AI.^[45] The CMA stated that it agreed with the committee’s “prioritisation of the importance of internet search for investigation”. It also agreed with the committee that there were potential concerns around the “anti-competitive leveraging of market power from internet search into other areas, including the training of generative AI, and the importance of this for the news sector”.

The CMA noted that it had launched its first strategic market status designation investigation in January 2025.^[46] The investigation aimed to assess Google’s position in search and search advertising and to examine how this impacted consumers and businesses, including news publishers, advertisers and rival search engines. The scope of this investigation included determining whether Google could “leverage market power” from general search into other areas “in a way which limits competition from rivals and leads to worse outcomes for consumers and businesses”. It also considered whether Google was “able to exploit its position in search to avoid giving publishers, including news media businesses, control over how their content is used in its AI services”.

The CMA further stated that, alongside considering whether to designate Google as having strategic market status, it would investigate whether to impose conduct requirements on Google to “address existing issues we find or protect against it exploiting its strong position in the future”.^[47] It also highlighted that in 2022, the CMA, in collaboration with Ofcom, had published joint advice to the government. This advice outlined how the government’s proposed “pro-competition regime for digital markets” might allow the CMA to address some issues that news publishers faced in their interactions with technology platforms. These issues included “a lack of transparency control and fair payment for content”. The advice also proposed setting rules on the conduct of tech platforms towards news publishers.^[48]

3.3 BBC

In March 2025, the BBC published its response to the committee’s report.^[49] The BBC described the report as “insightful and useful” and thanked the committee for its recommendations.^[50]

Addressing the recommendation that the 2027 charter review represented a “key opportunity” to “refresh” the BBC’s relationship with local news, the BBC stated that it provided “distinctive and essential local services” and worked with local partners to “help foster a strong local news provision for all and helping to build social cohesion”.^[51] It noted that BBC Local, comprised of 39 local radio stations, 43 news websites, podcasts and content on BBC Sounds and 13 regional television news programmes. Additionally, it stated that the BBC provided “dedicated services to the nations”, including content in minority languages, such as BBC Radio nan Gàidheal and BBC Alba in Scotland, BBC Radio Cymru in Wales, and Ulster-Scots programming and Irish language content on BBC Gaeilge online in Northern Ireland.

Discussing the recommendation to expand the local democracy reporting service, the BBC described it as a “public service news initiative”, managed by the BBC in partnership with the News Media Association (NMA) to “help fill a gap in the reporting of local democracy issues across the UK”.^[52] The BBC explained that the service was funded by the BBC and delivered under contract by the local news sector. It highlighted that the service employed 165 reporters and noted that a new procurement process was underway in preparation for the new contract period starting on 1 July 2025, which would run until the end of the current charter. The BBC emphasised that it was working closely with the NMA to “ensure the continued success of the scheme into the future” and was “exploring new ways to partner with the wider sector”.

4. Read more

• • • David Caswell and Mary Fitzgerald, ‘AI is the media’s chance to reinvent itself’, Prospect, 5 March 2025
    • News Media Association, ‘NMA responds to government’s response to Lords communications and digital committee’s future of news report’, 6 February 2025
    • Claire Meadows, ‘Society ‘disappointed’ by government response to future of news report’, Society of Editors, 6 February 2025
    • Ofcom, ‘Review of local media in the UK’, 29 November 2024
    • Bron Maher, ‘Warning of imminent, ‘irreparable’ fracture of news landscape without action’, Press Gazette, 26 November 2024
    • Alexandra Topping, ‘Keir Starmer says media firms should have control of output used in AI’, Guardian, 28 October 2024

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