Publishers fear AI search summaries and chatbots mean ‘end of traffic era’

Mon, 12 Jan 2026

Media bosses expect web referrals to plunge and want journalists to emulate content creators, report finds

Media companies expect web traffic to their sites from online searches to plummet over the next three years, as AI summaries and chatbots change the way consumers use the internet.

An overwhelming majority are also planning to encourage their journalists to behave more like YouTube and TikTok content creators this year, as short-form video and audio content continues to boom.