Social Media and News Consumption among Young Spaniards: A Diachronic Analysis (2021-2023)

In recent years, there have been substantial changes in young people's information routines, particularly in the channels they use to access news. This article aims, first, to characterize young Spaniards' news consumption habits and their evolution over the period 2021-2023; and second, to define distinct user profiles in relation to news consumption. The study is based on three annual surveys of 3,999 individuals aged 15 to 24, proportionally distributed by sex, age, habitat, and region. The results allow us to draw several conclusions: 1) interest in news has increased over this period; 2) social media has solidified its role as the primary, and often sole, source of information; 3) trust in social media continues to fall short of that in traditional media, such as radio or the press; 4) approximately 70% of young people are incidentally exposed to current affairs content; and 5) three distinct groups of young people can be identified based on their relationship with information: those who do not actively seek news and consume it only passively, those who seek it exclusively through social media, and those who seek it by combining social and traditional media.