Are We Reading Less, or Just Reading Differently?

24 September 2025 content editor Culture, Lifestyle, Tech, Technology, Wellbeing Comments Off on Are We Reading Less, or Just Reading Differently?

The question of whether we read less today is a complex one. On the surface, the notion that we are no longer a “reading society” seems plausible. We have become a culture of instant gratification, with an optical stimulus now trumping the literary and textual. It’s a world where a 30-second TikTok clip or a scrolling news feed has more pull than a chapter of a novel. This constant barrage of short-form content is arguably changing our brains and eroding our ability to focus and window for deeper though. A study from 2025 found that the average human attention span is now just 8.25 seconds, a stark decline from 12 seconds in 2000. This cognitive shift may explain why many people find it increasingly difficult to finish books.

Yet, this isn’t the full story. The notion that we are reading less may be more perception than reality. Perhaps we’re simply reading more, but in a different way. The printing press, invented by Gutenberg in the 1440s, was the first great democratiser of information, making books a luxury accessible to more people. Today, the internet has taken this a step further; everyone is a publisher and a consumer. However, this new digital landscape has its own forms of control, with powerful algorithms dictating what we see for both financial gain and statecraft. Platforms like Amazon and Audible, for instance, hold a near-monopoly on the digital book market. Originally institutions like the Monarchy, Church & State controlled what subjects and citizens a like could consume, latterly that has fallen to publishers although they’re still governed by National Law. Now conversely in a world without borders online platforms like Facebook, TikTok, Instagram & Twitter/X can control what people consume with any significant push back. This becomes pernicious where half truths and down right lies are presented as facts and are unchallenged.

The format of how we consume has also changed dramatically – the medium if you will. The rise of audiobooks is just one case in point. Sales of audiobooks in the UK saw a record year in 2024, reaching £268 million and demonstrating a 31% increase from the previous year. This suggests that people are not necessarily reading less, but rather listening more. It’s a shift that has been capitalised on by platforms like Audible, created in 1995, which offers a catalogue read by celebrities. As a result, physical book sales, while still the dominant format, have seen a slight decrease in some markets. For example, in 2024, print book sales in the UK dropped by 0.6% in value compared to 2023. This data suggests that while the quantity of reading may be stable or even increasing, the quality and type of content we engage with are changing, and this may indeed be affecting our critical thinking. Listening to audiobooks is a great shortcut and provides a nice way to multi-task, say you’re commuting to work, now you can listen to the entire works of Shakespeare. While its affects are not particularly bad, is this form of consumption considered laziness? At times yes and at times no, presumably there is a stronger cerebral connection between the actual embodied act and processing of reading a book than merely listening to it.

The Reading Shift: Quantity Over Quality?

The debate isn’t about whether we are consuming fewer words, but rather what kind of words we are consuming. The majority of book sales on platforms like Amazon are dominated by certain genres. In 2024, genres like romance and crime/thriller were the most popular, with a significant rise in self-help and biography sales. Conversely, academic and classic literature sales remain a smaller portion of the market. This shift suggests a preference for escapism and self-improvement over complex literary or critical works. This is not really a surprise as given the chance most people would read gossip columns or watch reality TV than a hard hitting historical documentary.

There is a clear correlation between the rise of audiobooks and a change in reading habits. Audible, which holds a significant 41% share of the audiobook market, has made it easier for people to “read” while multitasking. This convenience may contribute to the perception that we don’t have time for traditional reading. While academic reading at universities, colleges and schools and a growing global population will always ensure a baseline level of book consumption, it is crucial to understand what kind of information is being ingested. More studies are needed to track the consumption of gossip, news, literature, and AI-generated content over time to see how this affects our ability to think critically and how it might be driving people into biased echo chambers and walking down one way streets with the semblance choice.

[Facts]
  • Audiobook Sales: UK audiobook revenue reached a record £268 million in 2024, a 31% increase from the previous year.
  • Physical Book Sales: UK print book sales decreased in value by 0.6% in 2024.
  • Attention Span: The average human attention span has shrunk from 12 seconds in 2000 to 8.25 seconds in 2025.
  • Audible’s Market Share: Audible (a subsidiary of Amazon) was founded in 1995 and holds approximately a 41% market share of the audiobook market.
  • Most Popular Genres: In 2024, the most consumed book genres globally were romance, crime/thriller, and biographies/memoirs.
  • The Printing Press: Invented by Johannes Gutenberg in the 1440s, it revolutionised the spread of information.
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