Young Adults and the Future of News
The ways Americans get news and information have transformed dramatically in the 21st century. The news habits of the youngest adults reflect this shift – and may offer some insight into what the future holds.
Digital News Landscape
News Influencers Fact Sheet
About one-in-five U.S. adults say they regularly get news from news influencers on social media, and this is especially common among younger adults.
How Americans’ trust in information from news organizations and social media sites has changed over time
Overall, 56% of U.S. adults now say they have a lot of or some trust in the information they get from national news organizations – down 11 percentage points since March 2025.
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Digital News Landscape
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1 in 5 Americans now regularly get news on TikTok, up sharply from 2020
Among adults under 30, 43% say they regularly get news from TikTok, up from 9% in 2020.
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Podcasts and News Fact Sheet
Podcasts are playing a bigger role in Americans’ news diets. Around a third of U.S. adults say they get news from podcasts at least sometimes.
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Social Media and News Fact Sheet
Many Americans use social media for news: About a fifth or more regularly get news on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok.
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Bluesky has caught on with many news influencers, but X remains popular
The share of news influencers in our sample with a Bluesky account roughly doubled in the four months after Election Day 2024, from 21% beforehand to 43% by March.
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What Is News?
As people are exposed to more information from more sources than ever before, how they define and feel about “news” has become less clear-cut.
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No consensus on who comes to mind when Americans are asked to name a news influencer
In an open-ended question, we asked U.S. adults who say they regularly get news from news influencers to name the first one who comes to mind for them.
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How news influencers talked about Trump and Harris during the 2024 election
Most news influencers published posts about both candidates in summer and fall, and identical shares were more critical than supportive of each.
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A closer look at Americans’ experiences with news on TikTok
Many TikTok accounts mix in news with a variety of other topics, from celebrity gossip to jokes and memes.
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America’s News Influencers
This study explores the makeup of the social media news influencer universe, including who they are, what content they create and who their audiences are.
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Who U.S. Adults Follow on TikTok
American TikTok users follow far more pop culture and entertainment accounts than news and politics ones.
