Pew Research released the results of an online poll of over 2,000 Americans Monday that offers new insight into how Americans get their news. The study found:
When it comes to where younger Americans get news about politics and government, social media look to be the local TV of the Millennial generation. About six-in-ten online Millennials (61%) report getting political news on Facebook in a given week, a much larger percentage than turn to any other news source
In addition, a majority of Americans aged 19-49 reported getting their news from Facebook in the last week, which includes both Millennials and Generation Xers. Nearly 40 percent of online Baby Boomers (those aged 50-68) reported getting their news from Facebook as well. If the trend continues, the ten-year-old social media platform may well become the US's #1 source for news.
Since Facebook itself isn't a news organization, the findings suggest that more and more Americans rely on the news that their friends share as opposed to what any one particular news source deems important. In addition, whatever story ends up trending in the social media zeitgeist will be much more likely to permeate through the 19-49 crowd.
Findings in another study published in May suggest that a person's Facebook friends can play the biggest role in deciding what kinds of news a Facebook user is exposed to, whether it be liberal, conservative, or somewhere inbetween.
Interestingly, only 26 percent of Millennials reported having politics in their top three interests -- compared to 34 percent of Gen Xers and 45 percent of Boomers. However, it would seem the younger Facebook user is more likely to see political news and views that don't always align with their own.
Pew has the full report:
younger users get news on Facebook at greater proportions than older users
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