Survey shows teenagers rely on TikTok and Snapchat for news but don’t fully trust it

Saturday, 21 March 2026 – 07:15 Share this article: A survey of more than a thousand teenagers found that while young people primarily get their news from social media platforms such as TikTok and Snapchat, they do not have much trust in the information they find there. About 20% of young people, two in ten, rate their trust in news media at 5 or below, representing a sizable group with virtually no confidence in the media. Research by Newcom and Pinch, published in the National Media Trust Monitor, shows that roughly 80% of young people use social media for news. They give Snapchat and TikTok an average reliability score of 6.2, while Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Telegram, and X score just above passing. In contrast, traditional outlets like NOS, NRC, and de Volkskrant are trusted more, with scores approaching 8. Trust ratings differ by age: 12- to 14-year-olds give a score of 6.6, whereas 15- to 17-year-olds are more skeptical, rating it 6.2. Researchers note that many young people do not actively look for news, preferring to let it come to them. “They are by no means disengaged from news, but their approach is different from older generations. News often reaches
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