How many people use alternative media in Germany and how can we measure it?

Abstract

Digital media are often assumed to facilitate the production and spread of alternative news outlets. So far, however, it is quite unclear whether exposure to alternative media is a mass or a niche phenomenon. Although several studies attempted to measure alternative media use, these come to very different results. The present article aims to answer the general question of which methods measure alternative media exposure most accurately in order to approximate the number of alternative media users for the case of Germany. For this purpose, the study compares aggregate data from 27 studies comprising 34 measurements of alternative media exposure that were taken between 2015 and 2022. Moreover, the data analysis is complemented with a review of pertinent methodological literature. The study shows that although tracking measures do not capture all types of online media use, they do not appear to underestimate the number of alternative media users when compared to benchmark traffic data. From various self-report measures, those using lists of outlets with binary response options show the most similar results to tracking studies and the lowest levels of over-reporting. It is concluded that between 7% and 17% of Germans have at least sporadic contact with alternative media, while the number of weekly users is smaller and ranges between 2% and 4%. The share likely fluctuates over time in conjunction with current political events and developments. However, the data suggest that the alternative media audience did not grow over the past years. The article ends with a discussion of the potential impact of alternative media on society.