The younger generation in the UK, specifically people aged 16-24 are dependent on TikTok for the latest news and updates. They are very unlikely to read a newspaper or watch the news.
Unlike the times, when people used to read newspapers like The Guardian or follow BBC news channels to get news, it is not the same for the younger generation in the UK.
They prefer to get news from social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and recently TikTok too has been added to the list. The rise of usage of social media to get the latest updates and news has been increasing for a time now.
Reports suggested that there is a gradual increase in the percentage of users dependent on social media for news. According to recent data, 7% of UK adults use TikTok for news. Earlier it was 1% in 2020.
Yih-Choung Teh, Ofcom’s group director for strategy and research told The Guardian – ‘the priority of the younger generation is different, and their expectations too are different. They need everything quickly and lack patience. They want to be updated on everything happening around the world but they cannot spend much time reading the newspaper or watching a news channel to do so.
Adults today prefer video content over written content, because they are easily shareable, and they can also comment under any post giving their point of view.’
TikTok is a platform where dance videos and lip-sync videos get viral very easily. It has been noted that even informative and educational content has the possibility of getting viral. Hence, it is not a surprise that news content posted on TikTok gets viral, and adults are switching to this platform for news.
