A survey conducted in December 2020 assessing if news consumers in the United States had ever unknowingly shared fake news or information on social media found that 38.2 percent had done so. A similar share had not, whereas seven percent were unsure if they had accidentally disseminated misinformation on social networks.

Fake news in the U.S.

Fake news, or news that contains misinformation, has become a prevalent issue within the American media landscape. Fake news can be circulated online as news stories with deliberately misleading headings, or clickbait, but the rise of misinformation cannot be solely accredited to online social media. Forms of fake news are also found in print media, with 47 percent of Americans witnessing fake news in newspapers and magazines as of January 2019.

News consumers in the United States are aware of the spread of misinformation, with many Americans believing online news websites regularly report fake news stories. With such a high volume of online news websites publishing false information, it can be difficult to assess the credibility of a story. This can have damaging effects on society in that the public struggled to keep informed, creating a great deal of confusion about even basic facts and contributing to incivility.

In a survey conducted in May 2025, journalism was rated the most positively by U.S. adults, with 54 percent describing it as very or somewhat favorable. Social media followed with 49 percent favorable, though a notable share of respondents also held negative views. The news media and the press were rated less positively, at 47 and 46 percent, respectively. Overall, the findings suggest stronger confidence in journalism compared to other media institutions.

In May 2025, a survey asked U.S. adults how they feel while consuming news. The results indicate that a majority feel informed, with 53 percent saying that news generally makes them feel this way. At the same time, 43 percent reported feeling angry, and 32 percent said they feel depressed when consuming news. In contrast, only 16 percent described feeling hopeful. These findings highlight that while staying informed is a major benefit of news consumption, negative emotional reactions—such as anger and depression—are also very common among Americans.

According to a survey conducted in May 2025, 56 percent of adults in the United States said they actively seek out news, while 35 percent reported that news usually comes to them. A smaller share were unsure about their news consumption habits.

A 2025 survey found that around one in four adults in the United States actively avoided news related to sports, followed by entertainment (18 percent) and lifestyle (17 percent). In contrast, health was the least avoided news topic, with just four percent of respondents saying they ignored it.

As of March of 2018, around 52 percent of Americans felt that online news websites regularly report fake news stories in the United States. Another 34 percent of respondents stated that they believed that online news websites occasionally report fake news stories. Just nine percent of adults said that they did not believe that fake news stories were being reported online.

Fake news

Coined by Donald Trump, the term ‘fake news’ is used to describe news stories or even entire networks believed to be spreading false information. Increasingly used by members of government and citizens on both sides of the political spectrum, the term is now a staple in debates regarding freedom of the press, corruption, and media bias. People of all ages now believe that over 60 percent of the news that they see on social media is fake and express similar concern over the accuracy of traditional news sources. While a cynical perspective regarding news and reporting may be positive in terms of holding guilty outlets accountable and ensuring responsible reporting, the fake news phenomenon has extended much farther than pure skepticism. As of 2018, around 35 percent of Republicans and 18 percent of Independents perceived the media to be an enemy of the American people.

A 2024 study on news consumption among children in the United Kingdom found that ** percent of respondents aged 12 to 15 years old had come across deliberately untrue or misleading news online or on social media in the year before the survey was conducted. ** percent said they had not seen any false news.

As reported in a survey conducted in January 2022 more than ** percent of all internet users in India had never shared fake news online. However, ** percent of social media users reported having shared fake news and misleading information unintentionally across social media platforms once or twice. The share of social media users who had unknowingly shared misinformation more than once outweighed that of active internet users.

The term ‘fake news’ is used in multiple different contexts, but officially refers simply to false information presented as legitimate news. Adults in the United States believe social media platforms and online news sites to be the most likely sources of fake news – 58 percent of respondents to a survey believed that Facebook was the most likely place in which they would encounter false news stories, and 49 percent said the same about Twitter.

A separate study revealed that 66 percent of U.S. adults believed that 76 percent or more of the news they saw on social media was biased. Social networks are generally not seen as credible or trustworthy news platforms – on a global level, social media was the least trusted source of general news and information.

Why does social media fuel or help to spread fake news?

Sadly, the main way in which fake news can be so quickly disseminated throughout not only one, but multiple social media platforms, is by users sharing such news with others (either knowingly or unknowingly). The ability to share content with friends and family is one of the key appeals of social networks, but the ease of doing so becomes somewhat sinister when it comes to the spread of false information.

Ten percent of U.S. adults admitted to knowingly sharing fake news or information online, 49 percent said that they shared such content and later found out it was inaccurate or made up, and 52 percent admitted to having done either of these things. This is a serious cause for concern. Sharing news in good faith and later discovering it was fake is one thing, but deliberately and knowingly passing such content on to others is another. Many social media users blame the networks themselves for the spread of fake news. Whilst social platforms do make attempts to regulate the content shared on their sites, the more users who actively take responsibility for the content they choose to share and hold themselves accountable, the greater the overall impact.

A study held in early 2023 found that Indonesian adults were the most concerned about the spread of false information on social media, with over 80 percent saying that they were very or somewhat worried about the matter. Whilst Swedish and Danish respondents were less concerned about misinformation on social media, the global average among all countries was 68 percent, highlighting the growing awareness and worry about false information worldwide.

In 2023, according to this survey, around ** percent of people in Germany said they saw fake news about the coronavirus pandemic. The second most common topic about which people saw misinformation on social media was the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The spreading of fake news is an increasingly relevant topic as sources of information and misinformation multiply. The press is the most trustworthy media according to French people and is considered more reliable than television or radio. In 2018, ** percent of respondents said they were exposed to fake news on social media very often, while ** percent said it was rarely the case.

During a 2025 survey, ** percent of respondents from Nigeria stated that they used social media as a source of news. In comparison, just ** percent of Japanese respondents said the same. Large portions of social media users around the world admit that they do not trust social platforms either as media sources or as a way to get news, and yet they continue to access such networks on a daily basis. Social media: trust and consumption Despite the majority of adults surveyed in each country reporting that they used social networks to keep up to date with news and current affairs, a 2018 study showed that social media is the least trusted news source in the world. Less than ** percent of adults in Europe considered social networks to be trustworthy in this respect, yet more than ** percent of adults in Portugal, Poland, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Slovakia and Croatia said that they got their news on social media. What is clear is that we live in an era where social media is such an enormous part of daily life that consumers will still use it in spite of their doubts or reservations. Concerns about fake news and propaganda on social media have not stopped billions of users accessing their favorite networks on a daily basis. Most Millennials in the United States use social media for news every day, and younger consumers in European countries are much more likely to use social networks for national political news than their older peers. Like it or not, reading news on social is fast becoming the norm for younger generations, and this form of news consumption will likely increase further regardless of whether consumers fully trust their chosen network or not.

According to a survey conducted among urban citizens from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, a share of ** percent of respondents considered themselves to have been exposed to fake news on social media in the past three months. With another ** percent having the same concerns about news websites, most respondents seemed to doubt the truthfulness of online channels.

In response to a survey conducted in ************, ** percent of social media users in India reported having been misled by fake news circulated online about once or twice which was slightly higher than active internet users. Meanwhile, ** percent of all internet users had experienced this a few times. Notably, more than half the respondents claimed to have never been misled by fake news online.

In March 2020, nearly **** percent of social media users surveyed in Mexico claimed to have received the largest amount of false information regarding COVID-19 via WhatsApp, while **** percent of respondents said Facebook was the platform through which they got the biggest number of fake news on the matter.

A study held in early 2023 found older British adults were the most concerned about the spread of false information on social media. A total of 80 percent said they were very or somewhat worried, compared to 52 percent of those aged 18 to 24 years old. One reason for this could the savviness of younger consumers using social networks versus their older peers, however overall, more than half of respondents in each age group expressed concern about misinformation on social media.

As of December 2021, about ** percent of Filipino respondents reported they sometimes saw or read fake or wrong information on television, radio, or social media. Overall, ** percent of Filipino adults believed it was difficult to identify fake news.

According to a survey held in 2025, U.S. adults aged between 18 and 29 years old were the least confident in their ability to distinguish real news from false information, with 68 percent saying they felt very or somewhat confident. This figure rose to 72 percent among adults aged 30 to 44 and those aged 65 and older, while 75 percent of those aged 45 to 64 expressed confidence in this respect. One reason for this could be younger generations’ greater reliance on social networks, where misinformation tends to circulate more widely and can often be presented as genuine information by those who share it.

According to a global study conducted in 2019, ** percent of respondents felt that there was a fair extent or great deal of fake news on online websites and platforms. By comparison, ** percent less said the same about TV, radio, newspapers, and magazines. Traditional media in general is still considered more trustworthy than online formats, despite social networks being the preferred choice for many.

Meanwhile, as some consumers around the world now turn to influencers for news instead of journalists, the risk of them being exposed to inaccurate, incorrect, or deliberately false information continues to grow, and journalists face pressure to battle fake content whilst finding new ways to keep audiences engaged.

Fake news and journalism

More than ** percent of journalists responding to a global survey believed that the public had lost trust in the media over the past year. Whilst the reasons for this are many, the role of fake news cannot be undermined, particularly given the speed with which false content can spread and reach vulnerable or misinformed audiences. Either unintentionally or deliberately, fake news is often shared by those who encounter it, which only serves to worsen the problem. Indeed, journalists consider regular citizens to be the main source of disinformation, followed by political leaders and internet trolls.

Despite the threats fake news poses, journalists themselves feel that concerns about disinformation could positively impact the quality of journalism. There are also growing expectations from the public and journalists alike for governments and companies to do more to help boost quality journalism and curb the dissemination and influence of fake news. News industry leaders rated Google as being the best platform for supporting journalism, but the likes of Amazon and Snapchat have a long way to go before organizations consider them reliable in this respect.