Social Media

Entering the peak of the the 2020 election season, social media platforms are firmly entrenched as a venue for Americans to process campaign news and engage in various types of social activism. But not all Americans use these platforms in similar ways.

Americans have grown more divided on whether offensive content online is taken seriously enough and on which is more important online, free speech or feeling safe.

Videos from independent news producers are more likely to cover subjects negatively and discuss conspiracy theories.

U.S. lawmakers have received roughly 2 million more love than anger reactions to posts in the first seven months of 2020.

80% of Americans say social media platforms are very or somewhat effective for raising public awareness about political or social issues.

73% of Americans express little or no confidence in tech companies to prevent the misuse of their platforms to influence the 2020 election.

One-quarter of United States lawmakers mentioned the term on Facebook or Twitter during the 116th Congress.

Many social media users in the United States are exhausted by how much political content they see on these platforms.

Republicans are far more likely than Democrats to say major tech companies favor the views of liberals over conservatives. At the same time, partisans differ on whether social media companies should flag inaccurate information on their platforms.

Many legislators in four English-speaking countries directly addressed George Floyd’s killing and the subsequent protests on Twitter.