Where Gen Z Gets Its News: Social Media

A 2022 poll shows the favorite news source for Gen Z is social media.

While defining Gen Z is complicated, it may be even harder to understand the generation’s complex relationship with news and media. Lee Banville is the director of the University of Montana School of Journalism. He worked alongside Jim Lehrer on PBS NewsHour for 14 years as the internet revolution came online.

Banville said. "I remember Jim used to have a thing where it's like, 'All I got to do is convince the guy watching TV to yell out to his wife, 'Hey, Mable, come in and watch this.'' And that's how we knew we got a good story, is if he yelled that. And it was like, that is different. It's a different world, right?" A different world is right. Gen Z is broadly defined as people born between 1997 and 2012, who now range from 11 to 26 years old.