Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube are the top three news sources for teenagers in the UK, according to research from Ofcom.

The regulator found that Instagram is the most popular news source for teenagers, used by 29 per cent.

Both TikTok and YouTube are used as a main source of news by 28 per cent of teens.

The study found that BBC One and BBC Two, which were historically the most popular news sources for teenagers, have moved from number one to fifth place.

Only a quarter of teenagers – 24 per cent – use these channels for news in 2022, compared to almost half – 45 per cent – five years ago.

“Teenagers today are increasingly unlikely to pick up a newspaper or tune into TV News, instead preferring to keep up-to-date by scrolling through their social feeds,” said Yih-Choung Teh, Ofcom group director for strategy and research. “And while youngsters find news on social media to be less reliable, they rate these services more highly for serving up a range of opinions on the day’s topical stories.”

Adults

Ofcom revealed that while BBC One remains the most used news source among all online adults, it is one of several major TV news channels to reach fewer people in 2022.

News viewing on BBC One, BBC Two, BBC News channel, ITV and Sky News is now below pre-pandemic levels.

But TikTok has seen the largest uptick in use of any news source between 2020 and this year.

Two years ago 0.8 million UK adults used the video platform as a news source, in 2022 3.9 million adults - or 7 per cent - use the social media site to keep up-to-date with the news.

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