Telegram as Information Fast Food: Changing Tastes in Ukrainian Media Audiences

Introduction. Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has caused significant transformations in the country’s media landscape. Traditional media have partially lost their positions, giving way to new communication platforms, particularly messengers. The audience’s transition to the Telegram platform has become especially noticeable, as it has become a leading source of information, particularly among young people. Relevance and Purpose. The relevance of this research is driven by the rapid change in media consumption during wartime and the need to understand new trends in mass communication. The study aims to identify the peculiarities of media consumption transformation among university students and analyze the advantages and disadvantages of Telegram as a dominant information source under martial law. Methodology. The research is based on a survey of 414 students from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv and Borys Grinchenko Kyiv Metropolitan University. Quantitative analysis methods were used to process survey data and qualitative analysis to determine the characteristics of the Telegram platform. Results. The study revealed that 93% of surveyed students primarily receive news from social networks, with Telegram being the undisputed leader (89.6%). However, only 40.4% of respondents trust social networks as an information source. Notably, 29.8% of users don’t know the owners of any information channels they use. The main advantages of Telegram (speed, functionality, accessibility) and disadvantages (information verification issues, lack of accountability, security risks) were identified. Conclusions. The research confirms a radical change in young people’s media content consumption during wartime. Telegram has become the dominant platform for news consumption, displacing traditional media. However, low trust levels and a significant number of anonymous sources create information security risks. This necessitates developing new approaches to media regulation and improving audience media literacy.