Half of all U.S. adults get their news from social media platforms, including TikTok, X, Facebook and Instagram, according to a new Pew Research study. X tends to be the platform with the most news content, and respondents said they use X for news content, as opposed to other social media sites.
How to Choose Your News – Damon Brown
Facebook, TikTok and Instagram users don’t primarily use the platforms to get news, according to the research, but they do report seeing opinions about current events, along with humorous posts that reference them. The research shows that people see more of these types of posts than actual breaking news posts.
The research found that more people get their news from influencers or other people they don’t know on TikTok, while they get their news from friends, family and other acquaintances on Facebook and Instagram. X users tend to get their news from reporters or news-specific outlets, the research found.
Fortunately, we seem to be a bit more critical about the accuracy of our news. According to the research, most news consumers on every platform say they sometimes see false news. Overall, the research says, Republicans are more skeptical of news they see on Facebook, while Democrats are more skeptical of news on X.