A new survey by Harvard University finds more than two-thirds of young Americans disapprov
e of President Trump’s use of Twitter. The implication is that Millennials prefer news fro
m the White House to be filtered through other source, Not a president’s social media plat
form.Most Americans rely on social media to check daily headlines. Yet as distrust has ris
en toward all media, people may be starting to beef up their media literacy skills. Such a
trend is badly needed. During the 2021 presidential campaign, nearly a quarter of web con
tent shared by Twitter users in the politically critical state of Michigan was fake news,
according to the University of Oxford. And a survey conducted for BuzzFeed News found 44 p
ercent of Facebook users rarely or never trust news from the media giant.Young people who
are digital natives are indeed becoming more skillful at separating fact from fiction in c
yberspace. A Knight Foundation focus-group survey of young people between ages 14and24 fou
nd they use “distributed trust" to verify stories. They cross-check sources and prefer new
s from different perspectives—especially those that are open about any bias. “Many young p
eople assume a great deal of personal responsibility for educating themselves and actively
seeking out opposing viewpoints," the survey concluded.Such active research can have anot
her effect. A 2021 survey conducted in Australia, Britain, and the United States by the Un
iversity of Wisconsin-Madison found that young people’s reliance on social media led to gr
eater political engagement.Social media allows users to experience news events more intima
tely and immediately while also permitting them to re-share news as a projection of their
values and interests. This forces users to be more conscious of their role in passing alon
g information. A survey by Barna research group found the top reason given by Americans fo
r the fake news phenomenon is “reader error," more so than made-up stories or factual mist
akes in reporting. About a third say the problem of fake news lies in “misinterpretation o
r exaggeration of actual news" via social media. In other words, the choice to share news
on social media may be the heart of the issue. “This indicates there is a real personal re
sponsibility in counteracting this problem," says Roxanne Stone, editor in chief at Barna
Group.So when young people are critical of an over-tweeting president, they reveal a menta
l discipline in thinking skills – and in their choices on when to share on social media.