Young adults in the UK rely more on TikTok for current affairs but doubt its credibility, reports an Ofcom survey.
Young adults in the United Kingdom rely more on social media platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and Youtube for news, reported news research from Ofcom.
While the older generation turned to traditional means like newspapers and television news channels, the younger generation prefers staying informed through digital technology.
By 2022, there were 3.9 million more people watching news videos on TikTok while 800,000 individuals did so in 2020. In 2022, 29 percent of teens claimed Instagram was their major source of news, with TikTok and YouTube close behind.
Social media platforms are giving significant competition to news channels such as BBC, The Guardians, and 24-hours news channels in the UK.
But among older age groups, the traditional methods for news consumption such as print, TV, and radio news sources continue to stay prominent.
Younger generations are largely responsible for the surge in TikTok news consumption – 50% of the app’s users are between the ages of 16 and 24. About 7 percent of adults use TikTok for news.
According to Ofcom, the number of people who use the social networking platform to get news is now equivalent to that of those who use Sky News’ website and app.
“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,” said Yih-Choung Teh, Ofcom’s group director for strategy and research.
“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.”
The survey also discovered that half of those who use TikTok for current affairs acquire their “facts” from other TikTokers rather than looking to traditional news organizations for their updates, which is concerning for anyone worried about the spread of news disinformation.
44 percent of individuals who use the site to stay up to date on current events cite their primary sources as the people they follow, while 36 percent cite their friends and family. Only 24 percent mention legitimate news sources. Sky News, the BBC, and ITV are the three most widely used official news outlets on TikTok.
Additionally, they do not hold media expectations to the same level as earlier generations. They seek daily rapid access to news and prefer video information because it is simpler to share and comment on than written pieces. Al though TikTok rose to popularity as an application for entertainment, it is just as fast in updating current affairs as it is in catching up to the new trends and challenges.
Some news topics attract more attention on TikTok than on regular news channels. For instance, the legal case between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard gained wide public interest as people viewed the courtroom live on Youtube and shared small clips on TikTok that might trigger opinions and facts.
However, less than a third of young people surveyed in Ofcom’s study indicated they truly trusted the news articles they found through TikTok, despite its recent surge in popularity.
With a reach of 45 percent on Instagram, the BBC was the news source that people most frequently followed.
Approximately 60 percent of Instagram users who use the app to read news reported following a public person, whereas 44 percent said they followed at least one particular journalist.
About 71 percent of adults still place their most faith in television news, while social media news holds the trust of only 35 percent of consumers.
