• by Ray Schultz , October 11, 2022

Politico has returned to the top slot as the most influential news source among EU decision makers, according to a survey by BCW Global, conducted by Savanta ComRes.

Reuters is second, having leaped up by 10% since 2020.  

In addition, the study shows that EU decision-makers are most likely to access news and information in email newsletters and online news sites, tied at 79% apiece, followed by social media (51%). Only 13% access news via aggregators like Google News.   

The most influential news sources for EU decision makers are: 

• Politico—80%
• Reuters—77% 
• Financial Times—73% 
• The Economist—69%
• Euro News—60% 
• BBC—57% 
• EuraActive—53%
• Twitter—53% 
• Bloomberg—52% 
• EUObserver—48% 
• New York Times—45% 
• LinkedIn—44% 
• Wall Street Journal—40% 
• Agence Europe—38% 
• The Brussels Times—32%  
• Dow Jones—29%  
• Facebook—26%  
• The Parliament Magazine—25% 
• YouTube—22% 
• Instagram—18% 
• Contexte—15% 
• Mlex—11% 
• TikTok—6% 

The respondents recognize Politico for its insider access, quality of analysis and timeliness or speed of reporting. Reuters is read for its trustworthiness, the quality of its data and its positive reputation.  

A third of the readers were more likely to to cite the Financial Times as "very" influential  

The study also notes that the BBC's influence has dropped by 13 percentage points since 2020. This may be due to the impact of Brexit on British media’s influence,  it says. 

Savanta ComRes interviewed 213 EU decision-makers, including 16 MEPs, 81 EU institution staff and 116 Brussels opinion formers) online between April 7–July 25, 2022.