Fianna Fáil MEP Barry Andrews has said, “generative AI tools are undermining the business model of many news media organisations.”
The Fianna Fáil MEP was speaking in Strasbourg following a vote on the effects of AI on copyright.
Speaking on Tuesday, Andrews said “generative AI tools are undermining the business model of many news media organisations, by diverting click traffic away from their websites and social media channels.”
“Advertising revenue has already switched to tech giants like Google and Meta, which resulted in major restructuring in news media organisations in recent years. Many painful job losses have occurred in adapting to this new digital reality. Now many depend on click traffic from the tech platforms,” he explained.
“However most tech platforms have started to use generative AI to answer queries directly, so-called ‘zero-click searches’, without directing users to the providers of the news articles. People even talk about ‘Google Zero’, with Google becoming an answer engine instead of a search engine.
“The Reuters Institute 2026 news industry survey found that news publishers expect traffic from search engines to decline by more than 40% over the next three years. This could spell the death of many news organisations,” he warned.
“The EU must enforce Article 34 of the Digital Services Act which aims to protect media pluralism in Europe, before it is too late,” he said.