Telegram isn’t just for private chats anymore. By 2025, it’s become one of the most used platforms for real-time news - especially in places where traditional media is restricted. Over 500 million people use Telegram monthly, and nearly 3.5 million of its channels are dedicated to news. That’s more than all the news channels on Twitter and Facebook combined. But finding trustworthy news on Telegram isn’t as simple as opening an app. You need to know how to search, spot fakes, and use the tools that actually work.
How Telegram News Channels Work
Unlike Facebook or Twitter, Telegram doesn’t push news to you. There’s no algorithm deciding what you see. Instead, you choose who to follow. Each news channel is like a one-way broadcast - publishers post updates, and you get them in your chat list. Big names like BBC News, The New York Times, and Reuters all have official channels with blue checkmarks to prove they’re real. BBC’s channel alone has over 4.7 million subscribers.
But here’s the catch: anyone can create a channel. That means fake BBC, CNN, or local news channels pop up all the time. In late 2024, users reported finding three fake BBC channels before stumbling on the real one. The blue checkmark helps, but it’s not foolproof. Some scammers even copy the exact profile picture and name. Always open the channel, tap the name at the top, and check the verification badge in the info panel. If it says “Verified by Telegram,” it’s real. If it’s just a blue dot with no label, skip it.
Using Search to Find News Sources
Telegram’s search bar is your best friend for finding news. Type in keywords like “technology news,” “local weather,” or “Ukraine updates,” and it pulls up matching channels. You can even filter results by type - channels, bots, or groups. This works on all devices: iOS, Android, desktop, and web.
But there’s a catch. Free users only see channels they’re already following. To find news outside your list, you need Telegram Premium. Since late 2024, Premium subscribers get access to Public Post Search - which scans every public channel on Telegram. That’s huge. You can search for a breaking story, like “earthquake Turkey,” and see every post about it from dozens of channels, not just the ones you follow.
But it’s not free. Premium users get 10 free searches per day. After that, each search costs 10 Stars - about 10 cents. That’s cheap, but it still limits how much you can dig. If you’re serious about news, it’s worth it. For most people, though, sticking to trusted channels you manually add is enough.
How to Spot Fake News and Verified Channels
Telegram has no fact-checking team. It doesn’t remove false stories. That’s by design. But that also means misinformation spreads fast. The Reuters Institute found Telegram has a 23% higher rate of false claims than Google News or Apple News. Most of it comes from unverified channels pretending to be real outlets.
Here’s how to protect yourself:
- Always check for the blue checkmark in the channel’s info page, not just the profile.
- Look at the channel’s description. Real ones link to official websites.
- Check the subscriber count. A fake channel might have 5,000 subscribers - but a real one like Reuters has over 2.9 million.
- Search the channel name on Google. If it’s a scam, you’ll find warnings from other users.
- Don’t trust channels that post only in all caps, use excessive emojis, or demand you click links.
Some users rely on third-party directories like tlgrm.eu or telegramchannels.me to find verified channels. These sites list channels by category and verify authenticity manually. About 67% of regular news users on Telegram use these directories, according to a December 2024 survey.
RSS Feeds and Automated News Feeds
What if you want news from a website that doesn’t have a Telegram channel? You can make one. Services like RSS.app let you turn any website’s RSS feed into a Telegram channel. You paste the URL - say, a local newspaper or niche blog - and RSS.app sends every new article to a private Telegram channel you control.
Over 12,000 news publishers and independent journalists use this method. It’s how small-town reporters in Ukraine, Brazil, and India keep their audiences updated when they can’t afford a full Telegram team. You can set up multiple feeds - one for tech, one for your city council meetings, one for cryptocurrency updates. All in one place. No ads. No tracking.
It’s not perfect. RSS.app has limits: the free tier only supports 5 feeds, and updates can be delayed by 15-30 minutes. But for people who want total control over their news flow, it’s the most powerful tool on Telegram.
Organizing Your News Flow
Subscribing to 10, 20, or even 50 news channels can turn your Telegram into a firehose of notifications. That’s why 41% of users say they feel overwhelmed. The fix? Folders.
Telegram lets you group channels into folders. Create one called “World News,” another called “Tech,” and a third called “Local.” You can mute entire folders or set custom notification rules - like only alerting you during work hours. You can have up to 100 folders, each holding 200 channels. That’s 20,000 channels total. Most people use 5-10 folders.
One Reddit user, u/NewsJunkie89, shared: “I’ve got 15 channels in three folders - no ads, no tracking, no algorithm. I get exactly what I want, when I want it.” That’s the whole point of Telegram: customization without corporate control.
What’s Coming Next
Telegram isn’t standing still. In January 2025, they rolled out AI summaries for long news posts. Now, if a channel posts a 5,000-word article, Telegram generates a 200-word summary in your language - with 94% accuracy, according to their internal tests. That’s huge for users who don’t have time to read everything.
Later in 2025, they plan to launch a dedicated News tab - similar to Apple News or Google News - but only for verified channels. This will be the first time Telegram uses any kind of algorithm to recommend news. It’s a big shift. Pavel Durov says it’s meant to help users find reliable content faster, not to push clicks or outrage.
They’re also partnering with fact-checking groups in Germany and Brazil to flag false claims. These pilots will test whether users will trust Telegram more if it starts correcting misinformation - instead of just letting it spread.
Why Telegram Beats Other Platforms for News
Compare Telegram to Twitter/X. Twitter pushes trending stories, often based on outrage. Telegram doesn’t care what’s popular. It only shows you what you chose to follow. That’s why 68% of Russian independent journalists moved to Telegram after 2022 - they could publish without fear of censorship.
Telegram also has better privacy. Regular chats aren’t end-to-end encrypted, but secret chats are. And journalists use secret chats to share documents safely. The International Center for Journalists found 42% of investigative reporters now use Telegram for source protection.
But it’s not perfect. Google News scores 8.2/10 in user satisfaction. Telegram? 6.8/10. Why? Because Google knows what you like. Telegram doesn’t. If you want personalized news, it’s still better elsewhere. But if you want control, transparency, and no ads - Telegram wins.
Who Uses Telegram for News - And Why
Telegram’s news audience isn’t one group. It’s split by region and need:
- In Eastern Europe, 28% of real-time news comes from Telegram - because state media is controlled.
- In Southeast Asia, 19% of users rely on Telegram for local updates - because traditional outlets are slow.
- In Latin America, 12% use it for breaking news - especially during protests or natural disasters.
- In the U.S. and Europe, users are mostly tech-savvy, privacy-focused, or journalists - people who want to avoid algorithms.
There are over 45,000 crypto channels, 87% of major cities have local news channels, and 83 of the top 100 global news outlets are on Telegram. It’s not a fringe app. It’s a mainstream news network - just one built by users, not corporations.
What You Should Do Today
If you want to start using Telegram for news, here’s your 4-step plan:
- Search for trusted sources: BBC News, Reuters, The Guardian, or your local paper. Add them.
- Verify each channel by checking the blue checkmark in the info panel.
- Organize them into folders: World, Tech, Local, Finance.
- Mute notifications for all but your top 3 channels - or use the “Do Not Disturb” feature for 8 hours to 1 year.
Want more? Try RSS.app to turn your favorite websites into Telegram feeds. It takes 5 minutes. And if you find yourself checking news constantly, upgrade to Premium - 10 free searches a day might be all you need.
Telegram won’t tell you what to think. But it gives you the tools to find out for yourself. That’s why, in a world full of curated feeds, it’s becoming the go-to platform for people who want real control over their news.
