A new report from Pew found that the percentage of Americans who use apps to stay connected to current events has risen sharply over the last four years.

Pew Research published a new report on Oct. 23 that showed that more than half of Americans now consider social media to be a key way to get news and information.

Based on a survey of more than 3,500 U.S. adults, conducted in June this year, the data underlines the significant influence social media platforms have on the flow of information. It also reiterates the role that social media continues to play in terms of how the voting public stays informed of key events.

As shown in this chart, 58% of Americans consider social media to be an important connector to current events. Within that, 13% of Americans consider social apps to be their most important information source. Based on the total U.S. adult population of about 270 million, as estimated by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, that suggests that around 35 million U.S. adults now rely on social media to keep them informed.

That’s higher than when Pew Research conducted the same research in 2022. In that report, as cited in the above chart, 43% of U.S. adults said social media was an important way that they got news, while only 5% said that it was the most important news resource.

As noted, the data underlines the growing reliance on social platforms, while also further underlining the power that social networks have to influence media narratives, depending on each app’s policy and moderation approach.

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