Survey: Teens Overwhelmingly Distrust News Media

A nationwide survey of American 13- to 18-year-olds reveals deep skepticism toward news organizations: 84% of respondents used negative terms such as “boring,” “fake,” or “biased” when asked to describe news media, according to the News Literacy Project’s newly released report.

The study, conducted in partnership with Ipsos and released this week, polled 3,474 U.S. teens between March and May 2025. Key findings include:

• 42% specifically called news “biased”
• 39% labeled it “fake” or “misleading”
• 35% described it as “boring” or “irrelevant”
• Only 16% used exclusively positive words (e.g., “trustworthy,” “important,” or “helpful”

Researchers noted that distrust cuts across political lines, though conservative-leaning teens were somewhat more likely to use words like “fake” (45%) while liberal-leaning teens more frequently chose “biased” (48%).

The News Literacy Project, a nonpartisan education nonprofit, said the results highlight an urgent crisis in youth news consumption. Teens increasingly get information from social media platforms (cited by 71% as a primary source) rather than traditional news outlets.

Other notable stats from the report: 

•  Just 27% of teens say they can easily tell real news from misinformation
• 62% believe “most news organizations care more about pushing an agenda than reporting facts”

The organization is calling for expanded news-literacy education in schools to combat the growing perception that mainstream media cannot be trusted.