š“ Daily Mailās Engagement Dilemma
The Daily Mailās engagement rate more than halved in 2025ā26, leaving a major global publisher struggling to connect with audiences on social platforms despite its massive reach.
Ownership: DMGT
Followers: 23.1 million
Rank (UK): 10th
Performance: Very Poor
The Daily Mail remains a titan of the global news landscape, commanding a massive footprint of 212.8 million website visitors in December 2025. Under the stewardship of Editor-in-Chief Ted Verity and a digital team led by Nick Moar (recently elevated to Head of New Media at DMG) and Head of Social Hayley Kenny, the title has aggressively pursued a ādigital-firstā future. However, 2026 data reveals a stark contrast between the Mailās massive reach and its ability to maintain a sticky, engaged audience on social platforms.
Editorial Triumph: The Afghan Resettlement Scoop
While its social metrics fluctuated, the Mailās core journalism achieved peak industry recognition. The paper won the prestigious Scoop of the Year at the 2025 British Journalism Awards for its investigative work on the secret relocation of Afghan nationals.
- The Story: Mail reporters Sam Greenhill and David Williams uncovered a secret Ā£7 billion operation to bring thousands of Afghans to safety after a Ministry of Defence data leak compromised their identities.
- The Battle: The Mail fought a 683-day legal battle against a government super-injunction to bring the story to light, a feat praised by judges as a ānecessary public service.ā
The Engagement Paradox
Despite this high-caliber reporting and continued investment in senior social positions under Hayley Kenny, the Daily Mail experienced a significant downturn in social interaction. While the brand recently celebrated reaching 5 million followers on Instagram and over 1 billion monthly views, the actual depth of interaction per post has thinned.
Strategy Shift: Social as a Destination
The halving of engagement is partly explained by a fundamental shift in strategy. Nick Moar has moved the Mail toward treating social media as a standalone publisher rather than just a funnel for website traffic. Through the launch of DMG New Media, the focus is now on high-volume, "pass-through" video content (averaging 7 billion views across the group).
While this drives massive reach and "eyeballs," it often results in lower traditional engagement rates (likes/comments) compared to the smaller, conversation-heavy communities built by rivals like The Times. The Mail is effectively trading deep engagement for sheer, unparalleled scale.
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š Post Interaction Rate: 1.6%