Social Media Seen as Mostly Good for Democracy Across Many Nations, But U.S. is a Major Outlier
Most think social media has made it easier to manipulate and divide people, but they also say it informs and raises awareness.
Most think social media has made it easier to manipulate and divide people, but they also say it informs and raises awareness.
Social media is an important tool for consumers, with some Americans – particularly younger adults – turning to influencer recommendations.
Adoption of key technologies by those in the oldest age group has grown markedly since about a decade ago.
Rural adults are less likely than suburban adults to have home broadband and less likely than urban adults to own a smartphone, tablet or computer.
Black and Hispanic Americans remain less likely than White adults to say they own a traditional computer or have high-speed internet at home.
Three-quarters of U.S. adults who have recently faced some kind of online harassment say it happened on social media.
More than eight-in-ten U.S. adults say they get news from a smartphone, computer or tablet “often” or “sometimes.”
Two-thirds of parents in the U.S. say parenting is harder today than it was 20 years ago, with many citing technologies – like social media or smartphones – as a reason.
The gender gap in party identification remains the widest in a quarter century.
A median of 77% across 34 countries surveyed use the internet at least occasionally or own an internet-enabled smartphone.