Social platform Reddit is discussing the possibility of closing Google’s access to its content for use in artificial intelligence systems. The main reason was the rapid decline in search traffic, as users increasingly receive ready-made AI answers directly in the search engine, without going to the original sources.
Social platform Reddit is discussing the possibility of closing Google’s access to its content for use in artificial intelligence systems. The main reason was the rapid decline in search traffic, as users increasingly receive ready-made AI answers directly in the search engine, without going to the original sources.
This is stated in the article of The Wall Street Journal. A number of leading media outlets, including USA Today, Politico, The Economist and Reuters, are also joining the review of the terms of cooperation with Google.
In 2024, Reddit signed a $60 million per year deal with Google to use the platform’s materials for LLM studies. The contract is coming to an end, and Reddit’s management is reviewing whether to extend it. An additional problem for publishers is the technical limitation: usually, the ban on AI scanning automatically removes content from traditional search results.
The scale of the problem is demonstrated by statistics from analytics company Semrush. Between June 2025 and June 2026, USA Today’s organic traffic from users in the United States fell by almost half. Politico’s search traffic fell by 23%, CNN’s by 25%, and Business Insider lost more than 85% of its visitors from Google.
«It’s time to take a firm stand and say, ‘Enough!’» said USA Today Co. CEO Mike Reed, emphasizing the company’s willingness to cut off Google’s access and prepare for a future without search traffic revenue.
Other media outlets are taking a similar stance. «We are certainly looking at the economic trade-offs between search and AI-generated resumes,» Reuters president Paul Bascobert said.
Google, for its part, claims that new AI features are driving billions of clicks to external resources every week and helping publishers expand their audiences. The company also notes that it has content management tools for site owners and is launching a payout program for over 200 publishers.
