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Tiktok, Instagram and Twitter: which channels young people use to follow the news
Young people find out about apps on their cell phones
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More and more young people are getting their political news in different ways than ten years ago. But what are they and who or what is behind them – an overview.
By Alma Bartels
It’s a sunny morning in Los Angeles when Hasan Piker boots up his computer and turns on his screens and camera. Thousands of comments, emoticons and links appear every second on one of the screens; on another, several tabs are already open in the browser with news sites, articles, tweets, videos or graphics.
It seems to be a confusing chaos, but for Hasan this is everyday life. He is a streamer on the platform Twitterknown by the username HasanAbi, reaches 40,000 to 50,000 people not only in the USA but also around the world with its eight to nine hours non-stop stream – 7 days a week.
To person
Alma Bartels studied political science at the University of Bremen.
He reports daily on current political issues, compiles information and offers contextual embedding of comments or news from the USA, but also on more global conflicts. During major events such as US elections or the beginning of the war of aggression in Ukraine, more than 150,000 people watched his stream.
Defy right-wing voices
However, he not only reports on current topics, but also reacts to videos and posts by other conservative American political commentators such as Ben Shapiro or Steven Crowder. Both maintain their own YouTube channels and shows, in which they give their assessments and opinions on political discourses, similar to Piker – albeit on the opposite side of the political spectrum.
However, Hasan Piker did not start on Twitch, but on Facebook and Youtube. Before regularly entertaining thousands of viewers on Twitch, he worked at the “Young Turks‘, a left-liberal media site with its own shows and segments on Facebook and YouTube where its hosts discussed current political issues. Piker describes in interviews with the magazine “Complex‘ that at the time he saw too few explicitly left-wing political commentators defying the increasingly loud and powerful conservative and right-wing voices. However, he saw this as an opportunity and uploaded his own clips to the “Young Turks” Facebook channel.
His own show “Agit Prop” (the word describes propaganda of a communist-Leninist type) was particularly popular; Clips of his snappy, humorous counterarguments and opinions regularly went viral on the internet. Every few weeks, he and his “adversaries” like Ben Shapiro end up in the “trending topics” and hashtags on Twitter with some of their statements.
In recent years, networks of NGOs, journalists and news portals have developed on the platform, which regularly tweet and share their own assessments of current topics. A particularly large number of young people get their news via the “trending topics” page on Twitter or in their bubbles (each user’s personal network made up of the people they follow).
Political commentators such as Hasan Piker also regularly use this platform for minute updates on the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, with quotes from Joe Biden press conferences or last but not least on January 6, 2021, when thousands of demonstrators stormed the Capitol in Washington DC (on this tracked day 200,000 people Hasan’s stream).
Instagram as a medium for political news
But not only Twitter is a popular place for sharing news, exchanges or expressions of opinion. Also social networks like Instagram are increasingly used for news or political activism and content.
However, this platform relies mainly on photos and videos, which is why graphics and short headlines tend to prevail to draw attention to topics, articles or news. The visual form is used by radio, print and television news channels – with success.
However, when talking about social networks, instrumentalization or news distribution, a platform should not be underestimated: tiktok. This app is particularly appealing to younger millennial and Gen Z users. During the global protests surrounding the Black Lives Matter movement, environmental protection and the #StopAsianHate movement, users and activists used the platform for organisation, advocacy and education.
On the other hand, young users denounced the platform for its censorship of political issues and black content creators. Often, the platform’s algorithm blocked or hidden certain hashtags, made content invisible, or reduced the reach of many activists providing political education.
Despite everything, Tiktok is gaining new users every day, possible censorship is bypassed, and political discourse continues to take place, albeit in narrower subcultures and bubbles than, for example, on Twitter or Instagram. This is due to the algorithm, which flushes videos onto your own personalized homepage depending on user behavior, likes and comments.
Not only political figures and commentators have discovered the potential of Tiktok to influence younger people; Political streamers like Hasan Piker also react to Tiktok videos in their streams and discuss their content with their chat. However, the Twitch platform differs from platforms such as Instagram or YouTube: All comments are received in real time, which facilitates discourse.
Hasan also has a dedicated screen just for the comment column. At the end of his working day he says goodbye to his viewers, who express themselves through comments, send heart emojis or wish them good night (depending on the time zone).
Tomorrow he will start his stream again at the same time and report on news and political events that have happened since then.