Nearly half of American teenagers say they are online “constantly” despite concerns about the effects of social media and smartphones on their mental health, according to a new report published Thursday by the Pew Research Center.
As in past years, YouTube was the single most popular platform teenagers used — 90 percent said they watched videos on the site, down slightly from 95 percent in 2022. Nearly three-quarters said they visit YouTube every day.
There was a slight downward trend in several popular apps teens used. For instance, 63 percent of teens said they used TikTok, down from 67 percent and Snapchat slipped to 55 percent from 59 percent. This small decline could be due to pandemic-era restrictions easing up and kids having more time to see friends in person, but it’s not enough to be truly meaningful.
X saw the biggest decline among teenage users. Only 17 percent of teenagers said they use X, down from 23 percent in 2022, the year Elon Musk bought the platform. Reddit held steady at 14 percent. About 6 percent of teenagers said they use Threads, Meta’s answer to X that launched in 2023.
The report comes as countries around the world are grappling with how to handle the effects of social media on young people’s well-being. Australia recently passed a law banning kids under 16 from social networks, though it’s unclear how it will be able to enforce the age limit — and whether it will come with unintended consequences such as isolating vulnerable kids from their peers.
Meta’s messaging service WhatsApp was a rare exception in that it saw the number of teenage users increase, to 23 percent from 17 percent in 2022.
Pew also asked kids how often they use various online platforms. Small but significant numbers said they are on them “almost constantly.” For YouTube, 15 percent reported constant use, for TikTok, 16 percent and for Snapchat, 13 percent.
As in previous surveys, girls were more likely to use TikTok almost constantly while boys gravitated to YouTube. There was no meaningful gender difference in the use of Snapchat, Instagram and Facebook.
Roughly a quarter of Black and Hispanic teens said they visit TikTok almost constantly, compared with just 8 percent of white teenagers.
The report was based on a survey of 1,391 US teens ages 13 to 17 conducted from Sept. 18 to Oct. 10, 2024.
Nearly half of US teens are online ‘constantly,’ Pew report finds
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Nearly half of US teens are online ‘constantly,’ Pew report finds
- YouTube was the single most popular platform teenagers use
6 planets will parade across the night sky at the end of February
NEW YORK: Six planets are linking up in the sky at the end of February, and most will be visible to the naked eye.
It’s what’s known as a planetary parade, which happens when multiple planets appear to line up in the sky at once. The planets aren’t in a straight line, but are close together on one side of the sun.
Skygazers can usually spot two or three planets after sunset, according to NASA. Hangouts of four or five that can be glimpsed with the naked eye are less common and occur every few years. Last year featured lineups of six and all seven planets.
When will they be visible?
On Saturday, Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and Saturn will be visible to the naked eye if clear skies allow. Uranus and Neptune can only be spotted with binoculars and telescopes.
What time is optimal for viewing?
Go outside about an hour after sunset and venture away from tall buildings and trees that will block the view. Look to the western sky and spot Mercury, Venus and Saturn close to the horizon. Jupiter will be higher up, along with Uranus and Neptune.
How to know if you’ve spied a member of the parade?
“If it’s twinkling, it’s a star. If it is not twinkling, it’s a planet,” said planetary scientist Sara Mazrouei with Humber Polytechnic in Canada.
The parade should be visible over the weekend and in the days after. Eventually, Mercury will bow out and dip below the horizon.
At least one bright planet is visible on most nights, according to NASA.
Glimpsing many in the sky at once is a fun way to connect with astronomers of centuries’ past, said planetary scientist Emily Elizondo with Michigan State University.
Ancient astronomers used to make sense of the universe “just by looking up at the stars and the planets,” Elizondo said, “which is something that we can do today.”
