export_ofoct.com

[00:00.41] Nearly half of American teenagers – children ages 13 to 17 - say they are online “constantly” despite concerns about the effects of social media and smartphones on their mental health.

[00:28.04] The information comes from a report that was recently released by the Pew Research Center.

[00:29.37] As in past years, YouTube was the most popular platform teenagers used.

[00:35.74] Around 90 percent said they watched videos on the website, down slightly from 95 percent in 2022.

[00:47.69] Nearly 75 percent of those questioned said they visit YouTube every day.

[00:55.13] There was a small downward change in several popular apps teens used. For example, 63 percent of teens said they used TikTok, down from 67 percent.

[01:12.66] Snapchat use went to 55 percent from 59 percent.

[01:19.83] This small decline could be due to pandemic-era restrictions easing up and kids having more time to see friends in person.

[01:31.52] But the change is probably not big enough to be truly meaningful.

[01:38.16] X saw the biggest decline among teenage users.

[01:44.27] Only 17 percent of teenagers said they use X, down from 23 percent in 2022, the year Elon Musk bought the platform.

[01:57.02] Reddit usage remained the same at 14 percent.

[02:01.54] About 6 percent of teenagers said they use Threads, Meta’s answer to X that launched in 2023.

[02:11.90] The report comes as countries around the world try to understand the effects of social media on young people’s well-being.

[02:22.79] Australia recently passed a law banning children under 16 from social networks.

[02:31.02] Still, it is unclear how the Australian government will be able to enforce the age limit.

[02:39.26] It is also unclear whether such a ban will come with unexpected or bad effects, such as isolating some children.

[02:50.68] Meta’s messaging service WhatsApp was different in that it saw the number of teenage users increase to 23 percent from 17 percent in 2022.

[03:05.55] Pew also asked teenagers how often they use different online platforms.

[03:12.73] A small but notable number said they are on them “almost constantly.”

[03:18.30] For YouTube, 15 percent reported constant use, for TikTok, 16 percent, and for Snapchat, 13 percent.

[03:30.79] As in previous public opinion studies, girls were more likely to use TikTok almost constantly while boys went to YouTube.

[03:42.20] There was no meaningful gender difference in the use of Snapchat, Instagram and Facebook.

[03:53.09] Around 25 percent of Black and Hispanic teens said they visit TikTok almost constantly, compared with just 8 percent of white teenagers.

[04:03.99] The report was based on a public opinion study of 1,391 U.S. teenagers that ran from September 18 to October 10, 2024.