College students know TikTok news can be inaccurate, but still rely on it. A survey at 181 two-and four-year institutions by Higher Ed and Generation Lab found 75% of college students get news from social media, with TikTok and Instagram as top sources. Popular news accounts include News Daddy, a 26-year-old U.K. influencer with 1.5B likes who aggregates content from outlets, social media, and other influencers. And more bizarrely, 1.4M followers are watching an AI-generated talking fish styled after SpongeBob‘s news anchor character. Students openly admit they’re choosing convenience over accuracy with social news—one Syracuse junior learned about military strikes from the talking fish on TikTok, then Googled to confirm. Many students say they know social media is “blatantly dedicated” to making them doomscroll, but traditional news feels like too much work. (The Verge)
👀 Read more from YPulse: Fake News Is Fooling Young People—and They Want It Stopped
