Digital Content Next (DCN), a group representing news and entertainment outlets, reported that median referrals fell 10 percent in May and June compared with the same period last year. Non-news sites saw the sharpest decline at 14 percent, while news sites slipped by 7 percent. Some of the hardest weeks were late May and late June, when referrals for both groups dropped by more than 16 percent.
The pattern matches research from Pew, which tracked user behavior when AI summaries appeared in search results. Pew found that people were less likely to click through to external sites, with many stopping at the summary itself. That outcome creates what analysts describe as a zero-click environment, where the material is consumed inside Google’s product rather than on the sites that produced it.
For publishers, fewer referrals translate into weaker ad revenue, slower subscription growth, and tighter budgets for reporting or production. DCN noted that most of its members, spanning 19 companies, remain heavily reliant on advertising, which still accounts for close to four-fifths of their digital income. A slide in traffic puts that stream under pressure at a time when Google already dominates the online advertising market.
DCN argues the change is structural, not temporary. It links the fall in traffic to Google’s AI Overviews and AI Mode, which present synthesized answers above the traditional list of links. That placement leaves publishers with fewer readers even as their work continues to be used in training the system.
Google takes a different line, saying that AI summaries drive what it calls higher-quality visits, where people spend longer on a page. The company also suggested that external reports about traffic drops may rely on incomplete or selective samples.
Publishers are seeking stronger protections. They want Google to disclose detailed, verifiable data on click-through rates by content type and location. They also want a real choice to block their work from being used in summaries without losing search visibility, along with licensing deals to reflect the value of their material. DCN has urged regulators to view AI Overviews as part of Google’s broader search monopoly, noting the company’s position in mobile search and the ongoing U.S. antitrust case.
The debate comes with a sense of history. Earlier initiatives such as featured snippets and AMP also reshaped how users reached publisher content, often to the platform’s advantage. The concern now is greater because AI modules do not only highlight parts of an article, they often serve as a replacement for it.
If the shift continues, publishers warn that the open web will carry fewer voices, with less room for accountability and discovery. They argue that journalism and entertainment depend on reach and funding, and that AI-driven search risks eroding both.
Notes: This post was edited/created using GenAI tools. Image: DIW-Aigen
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