Teenagers in the UK prefer to get their news from social media over traditional media outlets, Ofcom has found.
The government-approved regulatory body has found that apps like Instagram and TikTok are more popular sources of the latest news than the likes of Sky News with Gen Z.
Meta-owned app Instagram is used by 29% of teenagers aged between 12 and 15, while TikTok and YouTube, are used by 28%.
As for adults, a whopping 3.9 million use TikTok compared with 0.8 million two years ago.
The News Consumption in the UK 2021/22 report also revealed that BBC One and BBC Two have placed fifth place, behind Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and rival ITV.
Five years ago, 45% of teenagers used BBC channels, and that’s now down to just 24%.
Yih-Choung Teh, Ofcom’s group director for strategy and research, said: “Teenagers today are increasingly unlikely to pick up a newspaper or tune into TV News, instead preferring to keep up-to-date by scrolling through their social feeds.
“And while youngsters find news on social media to be less reliable, they rate these services more highly for serving up a range of opinions on the day’s topical stories.”
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