A new report from Roskilde University reveals that an increasing number of Danes actively avoid news. According to a study from the Center for News Research at Roskilde University, more than one in five Danes avoid news “often” or “sometimes.” This marks a five percentage point increase compared to last year. Professor Kim Schrøder, who leads the Danish part of the Reuters study, states that the trend can be attributed to a general feeling of overwhelm among news consumers. “Even though Danes do not avoid news to the same extent as many other countries, we see an increasing trend of news avoidance here as well,” he says. Schrøder points out that it is not necessarily the content or angle of the news that leads to this behavior, but rather the overall volume of news. “Quite a few Danes simply suffer from news overload,” he explains.
The report also shows that more than one in three Danes find the total amount of news overwhelming. This indicates that many feel overwhelmed by the constant news flow, which can be a significant reason why more people choose to avoid news.