New study suggests Gen Z are welcoming ‘post-truth media age’

A large study into the UK’s media habits has found that Gen Z are less interested in traditional news outlets and more likely to opt for social media platforms, despite trusting their content less.

Gen Zers are less likely to use traditional media outlets such as BBC News and The Guardian over TikTok, Instagram, and other social media platforms, a new study has found.

In fact, young people are shunning traditional news despite saying they trust its content more. The findings have led former government communications chief Lee Cain to say he believes Gen Z are ‘ushering in a post-truth media age’. He is now a founding partner of Charlesbye, the communications firm which commissioned the study.

The report was called ‘Talking to the Nation: How To Speak To Modern Britain’ and included polls and focus groups with more than 8,000 people. It’s reportedly one of the largest studies of its kind.

Charlesbye asked Gen Zers to rank their most trusted media outlet.

Television news channels scored highest with 31%, while newspapers received 20% of votes. Dedicated news websites scored 13% while social media commentators only received 11%. The results indicate that young people trust mobile apps and platforms least.

However, this scepticism doesn’t translate to actual consumption numbers. Over a third of those ages 18 – 24 said that social media feeds were their primary news source, compared to almost a fifth that said TV. 13% said newspapers and 12% voted news websites.

Alongside the report, Cain said that young people ‘prioritise content over truth’.

He went on to claim that ‘this trust deficit could have huge implications in a year of elections across the world and geopolitical uncertainty, preparing the ground for an explosion of deep fakes and disinformation campaigns’.