A fifth of U.S. adults now regularly get news on TikTok, up from just 3% in 2020. In fact, during that span, no social media platform we’ve studied has experienced faster growth in news consumption, according to a new Pew Research Center analysis.
TikTok is primarily known for short-form video sharing and is especially popular among teens – 63% of whom report ever using the platform.
But it has also become a popular news source for young adults. In our new survey, 43% of adults under 30 say they regularly get news there, up from 9% in 2020.
The responses are self reported. If someone thinks that their conspiracy bullshit is news, they’ll say that they get news from tiktok.
Mainstream sources on the platform exist, but the algorithm doesn’t prioritize them over Joe Schmoe in his pickup truck