The Pew Research Center has released new data on American teens’ daily use of social media and artificial intelligence chatbots, revealing significantly higher use among Black teens compared to their peers of other races.
According to a survey of 1,458 U.S. teens ages 13 to 17, Black teens are more likely than their peers to use nearly every social media platform. Nearly all (97 percent) Black teens say they use YouTube, compared to 90 percent of White teens, 92 percent of Hispanic teens, and 92 percent of teens overall. While some 68 percent of all teens use TikTok, Black teens are by far the most likely group to use the platform at 87 percent, compared to 57 percent of White teens and 78 percent of Hispanic teens. Black teens are also significantly more likely to use Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, and X (formerly Twitter).
Over a third of all Black teens say they use TikTok (37 percent) and YouTube (35 percent) almost constantly every day. In comparison, 10 percent of White teens and 34 percent of Hispanic teens use TikTok constantly, while 8 percent of White teens and 23 percent of Hispanic teens use YouTube constantly. More than a fifth of Black and Hispanic teens use Instagram constantly throughout their day, compared to just 5 percent of White teens.
About two-thirds of all U.S. teens say they use AI chatbots. However, nearly 70 percent of Black and Hispanic teens use AI chatbots, compared to 58 percent of White teens. Among teens who do use AI Chatbots, teens of all races are most likely to use ChatGPT.
Overall, 40 percent of U.S. teens say they use the internet almost constantly every day. Among Black teens, 55 percent say they are constantly online, compared to 52 percent of Hispanic teens and 27 percent of White teens.
