Audiences are becoming increasingly diverse, and they expect content that reflects the world around them

Among those surveyed, more than half of Black consumers prefer to watch TV shows and movies that feature people who look like them. Around half of Black and multiracial people actively seek out TV shows and movies that tell stories about underrepresented groups. But the team behind the scenes matters, too: Nearly 70% of Black consumers (and more than half of Asian, multiracial, and Hispanic and Latinx consumers) say it’s important to them that TV shows and movies are written and produced by diverse creative teams. LGBTQIA+ respondents are also more likely than other consumers to expect the diversity of the real world to show up on screen (62% compared with 45%), to seek out shows and movies that tell stories about underrepresented groups (53% compared with 32%) and say it’s important that TV shows and movies have diverse creative teams behind them (66% compared with 45%).

Appealing to the full diversity of consumers is important to business success—and currently less than a third of consumers surveyed believe the M&E industry is inclusive.³ Deloitte research found that Black, Hispanic and Latinx consumers, and LGBTQIA+ audiences, drive more than a third of the US M&E market, and 71% of entertainment spend among these groups is driven by feelings of inclusivity.⁴ Investing in inclusivity could have real business implications for production companies and streaming video-on-demand (SVOD) providers. But it’s not just viewers from diverse audiences who want to see, and find value in, inclusivity and representation in their media and entertainment content, it’s also consumers overall–across race, ethnicity, gender identity, age, sexual orientation, and abilities. Our 2024 Digital Media Trends data suggests that nearly 70% of all consumers surveyed say that they enjoy watching TV shows or movies that help them learn about cultures different from their own, and nearly half of all respondents say they expect TV shows and movies to show the same racial and physical diversity they see in the real world. Investing in inclusion could pay off for brands: Research has shown that across all groups, consumers will spend more money on media and entertainment if they feel more included.⁵

But we know that shows and movies sometimes miss the mark in terms of inclusivity and representation,⁶ and access to inclusive content may be limited. 75% of consumers surveyed say they don’t currently feel represented in media and entertainment.⁷ This may be where the broad and diverse set of creators who generate social media videos hold a competitive advantage. More than 40% of consumers surveyed find videos on social media to be much more diverse than TV shows and movies—a figure that increases to 60% among Gen Zs, and to over 50% for Black, multiracial, Hispanic and Latinx, and LGBTQIA+ consumers. It may be noteworthy then that consumer churn on SVOD—or the percentage of consumers who have canceled at least one paid SVOD service in a six-month period—is highest among these same groups, according to our data.

The perceived diversity of social media videos may be due to the algorithms that power these platforms, and their ability to connect content with specific audiences that, in turn, could help to build a sense of community and belonging. If consumers engage with and follow diverse content and follow diverse creators, the platforms will likely continue to serve that up in the feed. And our data shows that following creators from similar backgrounds, and those who share their values, is important to people. For example, 46% of Black consumers surveyed say they are more likely to follow creators who look like them when compared with 24% of consumers overall. Similarly, approximately 60% of Black, multiracial, Hispanic and Latinx, and LGBTQIA+ people say they tend to follow creators who share their values (compared with 47% of consumers overall). However, social media videos and content creators—like movies and TV shows—also allow people to discover new things and learn about different communities. Nearly 40% of those surveyed say they follow content creators to learn about cultures different from their own. This figure increases to about 50% or more for Black, multiracial, Hispanic and Latinx, and LGBTQIA+ people.

In today’s media ecosystem, consumers have myriad options competing for their time, attention, and money. For M&E companies to remain successful, they should work to understand and meet the expectations of young, and increasingly diverse, audiences.

Key takeaways:

• Consumers across communities expect to see inclusivity in media and entertainment content; and production studios, streaming services, and other entertainment providers should be mindful of the stories they tell, the talent they hire, and the behind-the-scenes professionals they recruit. These expectations will likely only grow stronger as generations continue to be more diverse.
• The very makeup of the U.S. population is shifting and evolving. Entertainment companies should have all people in mind throughout the value chain and content development life cycle.