Social media and video platforms have become the main source of news for 18-25 year-olds. According to an analysis by the Reuters Institute reported by Meta-Media, 52% of 18-25 year-olds primarily get their news from social media, video platforms, and AI chatbots. Direct access to media sites now accounts for only 15% among those under 35.
This shift requires rethinking how online news for young people is structured, distributed, and verified.
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Low trust and rapid adoption: the paradox of news feeds on social media
We observe a striking gap between usage and trust. Trust in news disseminated on social media peaks at 22%, while trust in AI-generated information drops to 20%, according to Meta-Media data from 2026. However, the use of AI for information has surged in a year, rising from 7-10% to 16% among those under 35.
This paradox is significant. A young person consuming a feed they trust little develops a utilitarian relationship with information: they capture signals, snippets, angles, without ever stabilizing a deep reading of the subject. Short video platforms (TikTok, Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts) amplify this phenomenon by formatting news into sequences of less than a minute, often without context.
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For those looking for formats designed for a young audience with structured editorial treatment, it is possible to access Newsyoung online and consult content tailored for this age group.
Avoidance of news among young people: a growing phenomenon
Voluntary avoidance of news is significantly increasing among the youngest age groups. This behavior does not reflect a disinterest in the world, but rather a saturation in response to the emotional burden of continuous information feeds. Topics related to conflicts, climate crises, or violence generate a form of informational fatigue documented by several recent surveys.
We recommend distinguishing two profiles of avoidance:
- Selective avoidance, where the young person filters certain topics (politics, current events) while remaining attentive to others (culture, sports, technology). This profile maintains an active connection with the news.
- Generalized avoidance, where the person cuts off all sources of information for extended periods. This profile is more common among adolescents exposed to anxiety-inducing content without adult mediation.
- Avoidance by substitution, where traditional news is replaced by content from creators who comment on information in a personal tone, without systematic editorial verification.
Avoidance by substitution is the hardest to detect, as the young person feels informed while consuming an opinion commentary, not journalistic treatment.
Information verification practices according to social origin
Three verification profiles emerge from studies on the informational practices of young people. The first includes young people who spontaneously cross-check multiple sources before considering information reliable. The second gathers those who rely on the perceived reputation of the source (a well-known “big” media outlet will be judged reliable by default). The third concerns those who do not actively verify but adjust their level of trust based on the originating social network.
This finding has direct implications for media education. An effective media education program targets verification reflexes, not just the ability to identify false information. The nuance is technical: spotting dubious content is a passive skill, while cross-referencing a source is an active skill.
Online news formats suited for adolescents: selection criteria
Not all youth media are created equal. We recommend evaluating a news media outlet for adolescents based on specific criteria rather than its notoriety.
- Traceability of sources: each article or video should allow identification of the origin of the information (news agency dispatch, institutional report, attributed testimony).
- Frequency of updates: a media outlet that publishes daily provides ongoing news coverage; a media outlet that publishes sporadically functions more like a thematic magazine.
- Adaptation of reading level: vocabulary, article length, and presence of contextual definitions should match the targeted age group (10-14 years, 15-18 years, 18-25 years).
- Absence of editorial/advertising mix: sponsored content must be clearly identified, which remains a weak point for many platforms targeting young people.
A reliable youth media always separates fact from commentary. This distinction, commonplace in adult press, is often blurred in short formats aimed at adolescents.
The role of media and information education in digital practices
The informational practices of young people are not deficient; they are different. Podcasts, discussion threads, thematic newsletters, popularization accounts on social media: these channels constitute a rich but dispersed informational ecosystem.
The challenge for online news actors targeting young people is not to bring this audience back to traditional formats but to ensure that the formats they already consume meet verifiable editorial standards. The shift from a diffusion logic to a certification logic of information remains the most structuring task for the coming years.