In today’s world, it’s almost impossible to avoid the endless stream of information bombarding us from all directions. Whether it’s a light-hearted viral moment, like a cute cat wearing a tiny sweater, or major political shifts and global crises, the media covers it all.
With social media and traditional outlets offering round-the-clock updates, livestreaming platforms have emerged as key sources for breaking news and political coverage. Though historically associated with gaming and entertainment, these platforms are increasingly becoming go-to destinations for serious updates. Media organizations worldwide have embraced this shift, with YouTube channels dedicated to news and politics becoming as vital, in some countries, as traditional TV broadcasts.
Of course, livestreaming channels focused on news and politics reflect the varying sizes and demographics of their audiences across countries. India, for instance, stands out significantly: with its vast population, a large portion of the top 100 news channels originate there. Audience reach also varies widely: while La Nacion is primarily watched in Argentina, Al Jazeera enjoys a truly global viewership. Additionally, while some channels stick to one live broadcast at a time, others leverage YouTube’s capabilities to host multiple simultaneous streams, each focusing on different topics.
Considering these trends, Streams Charts presents its analysis of the most-watched news and politics livestream channels by country.
Qatar — Al Jazeera Arabic
The most-watched news channel in livestreaming, by a significant margin, is Al Jazeera Arabic, headquartered in Doha, the capital of Qatar. The channel gained particular prominence after the tragic events of October 7, when a Hamas-led attack on Israel occurred.
For several years, the channel maintained a steady audience of 10,000 to 20,000 concurrent viewers monthly. However, after the incident and the subsequent escalation of the Middle East conflict, Al Jazeera’s audience skyrocketed. Initially, it grew nearly tenfold, and even over a year later, the viewership remains significantly higher: about double the pre-October 7, 2023, levels.
In 2024, a notable spike in activity was recorded on October 2, when Iran launched a massive ballistic missile attack on Israel. The livestream covering the event attracted more than 717,000 viewers at its peak, as people tuned in to make sense of the unfolding situation.
The Arabic version of Al Jazeera attracts nearly four times as many viewers as its main competitor and the second-largest media channel in the Middle East, Al Arabiya. Interestingly, Al Arabiya regularly runs multiple live broadcasts on its channel simultaneously, but even with this approach, Al Jazeera consistently outperforms it in attracting a significantly larger audience.
Al Jazeera also operates separate news channels in other languages, including English, and cumulatively, its broadcasting network ranks as the leading news resource in livestreaming by audience size.
Streams Charts offers an extensive database of livestream channels, featuring hundreds of top news and politics channels worldwide. If you're looking to access detailed stats and insights on the political livestreaming landscape, get in touch with us today.
Argentina — TN
TN, formerly known as Todo Noticias ("All News"), is the largest streaming news television channel in Argentina, owned by the Clarín Group and its subsidiary, Artear. The channel boasts over 4.5 million followers and ranks as one of the largest in livestreaming overall.
Unlike Al Jazeera, which faced criticism in the mid-2010s for what some considered controversial coverage of the Arab Spring, TN has consistently maintained a high and stable audience without significant fluctuations. However, in 2023, the channel experienced a notable boost in viewership during its coverage of Argentina's presidential election campaign. Even after the elections, TN continues to attract a larger audience compared to 1-2 years earlier: its daily concurrent viewers grew from 15,000-25,000 to 35,000-45,000.
TN faces strong competition from several channels that attract a comparable audience. These include La Nación ("The Nation"), the country's leading conservative newspaper, and Canal 5 Noticias ("Channel 5 News"). Currently, all three channels rank among the top 10 news channels worldwide in livestreaming.
India — Aaj Tak
India is the country with the greatest variety of major news channels, with just under half of the top 40 channels originating from there. The largest in terms of livestream content consumption is Aaj Tak ("Until Today"), a news channel owned by TV Today Network, part of the New Delhi-based media conglomerate Living Media Group.
One distinctive feature of this channel is its strategy of running a large number of diverse streams simultaneously. Some streams feature weather forecasts, others cover general news, while others focus on breaking news, and so on. Individually, these streams attract relatively modest viewership numbers, but the cumulative result is very impressive.
The channel saw its largest reach this year in early June, when the Indian parliamentary elections concluded. Around 968 million citizens of India were eligible to vote across seven stages, depending on the region. Voter turnout for the 2024 elections exceeded 70 percent: the highest in the history of India’s parliamentary elections. This election also saw the highest level of female participation in India’s electoral history, which helps explain the public’s strong interest in news surrounding the event.
Brazil — SBT Central
The largest livestreaming news channel in Brazil is SBT Central, a television station headquartered in Jaú, a city in the state of São Paulo. The channel has experienced steady and consistent growth in its audience throughout 2024, without any significant fluctuations.
Its strongest viewership results have come since October 2024. Before that, the channel averaged about 10,000–15,000 daily viewers, but since October, it has consistently maintained a solid 20,000 viewers per day.
Arguably, the main competitor to SBT Central is CNN Brazil, but it significantly trails in audience size. In terms of total watch time, CNN Brazil has attracted almost half the viewership of SBT Central.
South Korea — MBC News
The news channel of Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation, one of the oldest and most influential South Korean television and radio broadcasters, is the most popular news livestream media channel in the country. It significantly outperforms its main competitor, YTN, with 70% more watch time this year.
Did you know?
While MBC News stands as the largest media livestream channel for news and politics in South Korea, there is an equally popular YouTube channel in the country: Kim Eo-Jun’s Humility is Hard News Factory. Run by the journalist Kim Eo-Jun, it has become a hub for other prominent reporters, some of whom transitioned to freelancing after working with major media outlets.
Kim Eo-Jun’s Humility is Hard News Factory is a spiritual successor to Kim Eo-jun’s News Factory, a well-regarded morning political program that aired on Traffic Broadcasting System (TBS) until 2023.
MBC News, known for maintaining a dedicated yet relatively small viewership of 1,500 to 3,000 daily viewers, experienced a significant surge in early December when South Korea was rocked by an unforeseen political crisis.
President Yoon Suk-yeol’s sudden declaration of martial law sent shockwaves through the nation, only for parliament to swiftly reverse the decision. This unprecedented moment in South Korean politics marked the first major political upheaval in decades, briefly capturing the attention of both domestic audiences and the global community. During this tumultuous period, MBC News saw its viewership soar to an average of 16,000 viewers, highlighting the intense public interest in the crisis.
Kenya — Citizen TV Kenya
Citizen TV is a Kenyan free-to-air news and entertainment television channel owned by Royal Media Services, operating in countries such as Kenya, Burundi, Rwanda, Zambia, and the United States. It is undoubtedly the largest livestreaming news channel in all of Africa.
While the channel's biggest broadcasts took place back in 2022, there was a significant spike in viewer activity this year as well, occurring in late June. During that time, mass protests broke out across the country in response to a proposed tax increase. The situation became incredibly tense, with demonstrators, among other actions, storming Kenya's parliament, which ultimately led to street riots and more than 50 deaths.
In the midst of this tragic event, the channel saw a surge in daily viewership: previously, it would only attract 10,000 viewers on rare occasions, but since late June, it has consistently hit this number. However, by December, audience numbers began to decline, and by January, the channel risks returning to its previous average viewership levels.
Poland — Telewizja Republika
With no competition in its home country and outperforming other major European channels, including heavyweights like British Sky News, Telewizja Republika (“TV Republika”) is by far the most-watched live stream news channel in Poland.
In December of the previous year, the YouTube channel of the station rose to prominence with its outspoken criticism of changes in Poland’s public media sector. By highlighting political interference and leadership shifts in state-run outlets, it became a focal point for those opposed to the government's actions, effectively turning the channel into a protest hub.
Since then, the channel has seen a consistently strong daily audience, ranging from 7,500 to 11,000 concurrent viewers. There are currently no signs of a decline in viewership, suggesting that its influence and reach will remain robust for the foreseeable future.
Mexico — Noticieros Televisa (N+)
Noticieros Televisa, also known as N+, is the news agency of Tritón Comunicaciones and serves as the leading news livestream channel in Mexico.
Although the channel has been in operation for many years, it was 2024 that marked a significant increase in its viewership. Prior to this year, its average daily audience rarely exceeded 1,500 viewers, but now it consistently attracts between 6,000 and 7,000 concurrent viewers daily.
The channel also experienced its highest viewership in 2024, with a peak of over 750,000 viewers in early April. This surge in audience occurred during the total solar eclipse: the first in nearly two decades.
The second-largest viewership spike of the year occurred at the end of September, though it was due to much more tragic circumstances. Hurricane "Helen" caused widespread flooding, downed trees, and power outages in the tourist city of Cancun. Noticieros Televisa’s coverage of this tragedy attracted over 320,000 viewers, and the channel also experienced its highest daily average audience, with more than 15,000 concurrent viewers.
USA — NBC News
The leading livestreaming news channel in the U.S. is NBC News, the news division of the iconic NBC television network. Founded in 1940, NBC News has established itself as a trusted pillar of American journalism, known for its in-depth reporting on major national and global events. It is part of NBCUniversal News Group, a media powerhouse that also includes Noticias Telemundo, previously discussed.
While NBC News has an impressive subscriber base of over 10 million, its daily livestream audience remains modest, typically averaging fewer than 10,000 viewers. This relatively low number highlights the ongoing dominance of traditional media and digital news platforms in the U.S., where livestreaming is still a secondary option for many viewers.
That said, NBC News has successfully adapted to the evolving media landscape by expanding its presence across multiple platforms, including livestreaming. The channel’s steady growth over the past year demonstrates its ability to attract a consistent audience, with significant spikes during the fall of 2024. These surges were fueled by heightened interest in the U.S. presidential campaigns, as NBC News delivered live coverage of debates, town halls, and breaking election developments.
The channel’s biggest day of the year in terms of viewership occurred on the night of September 10–11 (Central European Time), coinciding with the much-anticipated presidential debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris. This debate, a pivotal moment in the 2024 U.S. presidential election, drew enormous audiences across all major U.S. news channels that broadcast on livestreaming platforms.
Did you know?
Five American news channels ranked in the top 10 for peak concurrent viewership in 2024, showcasing the high stakes and intense public interest surrounding U.S. election coverage. These record-breaking numbers were largely driven by the presidential debates, including the Biden-Trump showdown and the historic Harris-Trump debate. ABC News, the top-performing channel by this metric, reached an astounding 2.3 million viewers during the Harris-Trump debate.
Interestingly, only six channels globally managed to surpass 1 million concurrent viewers this year. Beyond the U.S., one of the standout performances came from Indonesian journalist Najwa Shihab. Known for her incisive reporting, she led individual news channels worldwide by drawing over 1 million viewers during her live coverage of Indonesia’s presidential candidate debates.
During the event, the channel reached a peak of over 920,000 concurrent viewers. This impressive figure secured its place as the seventh-highest peak viewership of 2024 among all news and politics channels on livestreaming services.
Thailand — Channel 3's Hone-Krasae
The most popular news and politics channel in Thailand is Hon Krasae ("Ride the Wave"), a talk show dedicated to social issues and hosted by the well-known journalist Kanchai Kamnerdploy (better known by his nickname, Noon). Aired on Channel 3, the show has been a staple of Thai television for over seven years, consistently ranking among the top programs in the country due to its wide-ranging appeal.
The show's popularity extends beyond its traditional airing, with Hon Krasae often appearing in fictional TV series and being parodied, further cementing its influence on Thai culture and media.
In 2024, Hon Krasae continued to draw significant viewership, with each episode regularly attracting over 130,000 concurrent viewers. This impressive figure places the channel in the top 10 rankings for news and politics livestreams, underscoring the importance of such shows in shaping public discourse in Thailand.
Conclusion
In 2024, the news and politics livestreaming landscape has proven to be more dynamic than ever, with significant viewership growth across countries worldwide. From Al Jazeera Arabic's surge in the Middle East to the steady rise of TN in Argentina, it's clear that audiences are turning to livestreaming platforms as their go-to source for breaking news and political updates. Channels like ARY News in Pakistan, CNN Turkey and Sky News in the UK also showed impressive viewership numbers, contributing to the global rise in demand for live, real-time political coverage.
This shift reflects a broader trend: livestreaming as a medium for news and politics is no longer a niche or supplementary option. It has evolved into a primary platform for both national and international audiences, making it an essential space for brands and media companies looking to connect with engaged, global viewers.
![โหนกระแส [Hone-Krasae] official](https://yt3.googleusercontent.com/ojAY0sH2x6el0Ct0AZISHDR22xfU_AGcKjtwwVqW43-VLgqVP5LokMvPEu552AN_F8g7dNpKZg){kind=small}