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After mass media: current indicators of news consumption in a cross-platform environment in Ukraine

stmm. 2026 (2): 156-171

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MARTA NAUMOVA, PhD in Sociology, Associate Professor, Senior Research Fellow, Institute of Sociology, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (12, Shovkovychna St., Kyiv, 01021, Ukraine)

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9152-6467

martanaumova1971@gmail.com

The article analyzes the transformations of media consumption practices in the conditions of a contemporary hybrid media system and the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war, substantiates the importance of studying audience media preferences as a key factor for understanding the processes of constructing social reality and the distribution of symbolic power in a digital society.

Central attention is paid to a critical analysis of traditional sociological approaches to audience measurement, which often rely on an outdated linear model of “communicator — passive audience.” The author argues that under conditions of media convergence and the dominance of algorithmic platforms, classical indicators such as “trust in the media” or the measurement of consumption by type of physical carrier (TV, radio, press) lose their validity. Using the example of the audience’s transition to OTT platforms and the growing popularity of Telegram channels, the blurring of boundaries between types of media channels is demonstrated. The phenomenon of the diffusion of roles between journalist and blogger is also analyzed separately, where personalized authority and the emotional delivery of content increasingly prevail over the institutional standards of the profession.

The empirical basis of the study is formed by data from monitoring research “Media Literacy Index of Ukrainians” (2020–2025) and projects by “Internews Ukraine.” The paper proposes an updated system of validated indicators that focus news media consumption by authorship and distribution channel, the intensity of exposure to socio-political content, provide for the differentiation of trust indicators toward various sources by type of authority (institutional vs. personalized), as well as the cognitive and emotional dimensions of audience sensitivity to distorted content.

The results of the study have practical significance for improving the methodology of monitoring sociological projects with the aim of developing strategies to enhance the informational resilience of the state under conditions of cognitive threats.

Keywords: media consumption; cross-platformity; media convergence; hybrid media system; trust in media; media resilience; sociological indicators; digital platforms; media literacy

References:

Castells, M. (2013). Communication Power. Oxford: OUP.

Couldry, N., Mejias, U.A. (2019). The Costs of Connection. How Data Is Colonizing Human Life and Appropriating It for Capitalism. Stanford University Press.

Detector Media. (2026). Media Literacy Index of Ukrainians: 2020–2025 (Sixth Wave): Results of a Comprehensive Sociological Research. [In Ukrainian]. [=Детектор медіа 2026].

Fricker, M. (2007) Epistemic Injustice: Power and the Ethics of Knowing. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198237907.001.0001

Giddens, А. (1990). The Consequences of Modernity. Stanford University Press.

Gillespie, T. (2018). Custodians of the Internet. Platforms, content moderation, and the hidden decisions that shape social media. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.

Gradus. (2025). Study of Media Consumption of Ukrainians. [In Ukrainian].

https://gradus.app/kk/open-reports/research-media-consumption-ukraine/ [=Gradus 2025].

Internews Ukraine. (2025). Ukrainian Media: News Consumption and Trust in 2025. [In Ukrainian]. https://internews.ua/media-research/ukrainian-media-news-consumption-and-trust-in-2025 [=Інтерньюз 2025].

Lovink, G. (2022). Stuck on the Platform: Reclaiming the Internet. Amsterdam: Valiz.

Naumova, M. (2021). Quality and Reliability of Media Content as Factors of Audience Overflow from Television to Internet Resources. [In Ukrainian]. Science and Education a New Dimension. Humanities and Social Sciences, 2021/6(254), 65–70. [=Наумова 2021].

Naumova, M. (2023). Ukrainian Audience After the Start of the Great War: Changes in Media Consumption, Perception of the Information Space, and Sensitivity to Distorted Content. [In Ukrainian]. Habitus, 45, 21–27. [=Наумова 2023].

Nguyen, С.T. (2020). Echo Chambers and Epistemic Bubbles. Episteme, 17(2), 141–161. https://doi.org/10.1017/epi.2018.32

Rosanvallon, P. (2008). Counter-Democracy. Politics in an Age of Distrust. Cambridge University Press.

Srnicek, N. (2016), Platform Capitalism. Cambridge; Malden: Polity

Ukrainian Society Under War Conditions. (2024). Collective monograph. [In Ukrainian]. Institute of Sociology, NAS of Ukraine (2024). [=Українське суспільство 2024].

Van Dijck, J., Poell, Th., De Waal, M. (2018). The Platform Society: public values in a Connective World. New York: Oxford University Press.

Received 05.04.2026

Accepted for publication after review 04.05.2026

After mass media: current indicators of news consumption in a cross-platform environment in Ukraine

stmm. 2026 (2): 156-171

DOI

Full text:

MARTA NAUMOVA, PhD in Sociology, Associate Professor, Senior Research Fellow, Institute of Sociology, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (12, Shovkovychna St., Kyiv, 01021, Ukraine)

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9152-6467

martanaumova1971@gmail.com

The article analyzes the transformations of media consumption practices in the conditions of a contemporary hybrid media system and the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war, substantiates the importance of studying audience media preferences as a key factor for understanding the processes of constructing social reality and the distribution of symbolic power in a digital society.

Central attention is paid to a critical analysis of traditional sociological approaches to audience measurement, which often rely on an outdated linear model of “communicator — passive audience.” The author argues that under conditions of media convergence and the dominance of algorithmic platforms, classical indicators such as “trust in the media” or the measurement of consumption by type of physical carrier (TV, radio, press) lose their validity. Using the example of the audience’s transition to OTT platforms and the growing popularity of Telegram channels, the blurring of boundaries between types of media channels is demonstrated. The phenomenon of the diffusion of roles between journalist and blogger is also analyzed separately, where personalized authority and the emotional delivery of content increasingly prevail over the institutional standards of the profession.

The empirical basis of the study is formed by data from monitoring research “Media Literacy Index of Ukrainians” (2020–2025) and projects by “Internews Ukraine.” The paper proposes an updated system of validated indicators that focus news media consumption by authorship and distribution channel, the intensity of exposure to socio-political content, provide for the differentiation of trust indicators toward various sources by type of authority (institutional vs. personalized), as well as the cognitive and emotional dimensions of audience sensitivity to distorted content.

The results of the study have practical significance for improving the methodology of monitoring sociological projects with the aim of developing strategies to enhance the informational resilience of the state under conditions of cognitive threats.

Keywords: media consumption; cross-platformity; media convergence; hybrid media system; trust in media; media resilience; sociological indicators; digital platforms; media literacy

References:

Castells, M. (2013). Communication Power. Oxford: OUP.

Couldry, N., Mejias, U.A. (2019). The Costs of Connection. How Data Is Colonizing Human Life and Appropriating It for Capitalism. Stanford University Press.

Detector Media. (2026). Media Literacy Index of Ukrainians: 2020–2025 (Sixth Wave): Results of a Comprehensive Sociological Research. [In Ukrainian]. [=Детектор медіа 2026].

Fricker, M. (2007) Epistemic Injustice: Power and the Ethics of Knowing. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198237907.001.0001

Giddens, А. (1990). The Consequences of Modernity. Stanford University Press.

Gillespie, T. (2018). Custodians of the Internet. Platforms, content moderation, and the hidden decisions that shape social media. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.

Gradus. (2025). Study of Media Consumption of Ukrainians. [In Ukrainian].

https://gradus.app/kk/open-reports/research-media-consumption-ukraine/ [=Gradus 2025].

Internews Ukraine. (2025). Ukrainian Media: News Consumption and Trust in 2025. [In Ukrainian]. https://internews.ua/media-research/ukrainian-media-news-consumption-and-trust-in-2025 [=Інтерньюз 2025].

Lovink, G. (2022). Stuck on the Platform: Reclaiming the Internet. Amsterdam: Valiz.

Naumova, M. (2021). Quality and Reliability of Media Content as Factors of Audience Overflow from Television to Internet Resources. [In Ukrainian]. Science and Education a New Dimension. Humanities and Social Sciences, 2021/6(254), 65–70. [=Наумова 2021].

Naumova, M. (2023). Ukrainian Audience After the Start of the Great War: Changes in Media Consumption, Perception of the Information Space, and Sensitivity to Distorted Content. [In Ukrainian]. Habitus, 45, 21–27. [=Наумова 2023].

Nguyen, С.T. (2020). Echo Chambers and Epistemic Bubbles. Episteme, 17(2), 141–161. https://doi.org/10.1017/epi.2018.32

Rosanvallon, P. (2008). Counter-Democracy. Politics in an Age of Distrust. Cambridge University Press.

Srnicek, N. (2016), Platform Capitalism. Cambridge; Malden: Polity

Ukrainian Society Under War Conditions. (2024). Collective monograph. [In Ukrainian]. Institute of Sociology, NAS of Ukraine (2024). [=Українське суспільство 2024].

Van Dijck, J., Poell, Th., De Waal, M. (2018). The Platform Society: public values in a Connective World. New York: Oxford University Press.

Received 05.04.2026

Accepted for publication after review 04.05.2026

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