Fox Dominates, Facebook Persists and Trust Fades: The Politics of News in 2025

From Fox News to TikTok, the way Americans consume political news is fractured across networks, platforms and generations. While legacy television networks still dominate among older and more partisan voters, social media plays a growing role for younger Americans, even as trust in what they see online remains shaky at best. The data reveals a country where political information flows through entirely different ecosystems depending on age, gender and voting history.

Fox News Remains the Political News Powerhouse But Only on the Right

American news networks largely serve distinct political tribes, reinforcing partisan identities. Fox News continues to hold the largest single share of the political news audience, with 29% of Americans naming it as their primary TV source for political coverage. The network’s dominance is particularly stark among Trump voters, 47% of whom say they most often watch Fox, nearly four times the share of Harris voters (12%). This strong partisan skew is mirrored in Newsmax viewership, albeit on a smaller scale: 5% of Trump voters rely on Newsmax, compared to just 1% of Harris voters.

CNN, meanwhile, draws 22% of the overall population, with support far more balanced between partisans: 32% of Harris voters say they primarily watch CNN, while 14% of Trump voters do the same. MSNBC is similarly left-leaning in its audience profile, securing 19% of Harris voters but only 5% of Trump voters.

Among voters who didn’t participate in 2024, none of the three major networks has a dominant hold. Instead, 23% of non-voters say they watch no network at all and another 15% cite “Other”, pointing to a growing disengagement or alternative news habits outside traditional media.

Younger Americans Are Tuning Out TV News Altogether

Age plays a critical role in shaping news consumption patterns. While 46% of Americans watch television news daily, this rises to 63% among voters aged 65 and over compared to just 41% for those aged 18–24 and only 36% of 25–34s.

Younger Americans are not only less frequent viewers, they are more likely to reject TV news altogether. 8% of 18-24 year olds “never” watch, compared to just 3% of those aged 65 and over. Even those who do watch are far more likely to do so only once a week or less, signaling a fundamental generational break from the broadcast model.

Facebook Is the Dominant Social Media News Source, Especially Among the Middle-Aged

When it comes to political news on social media, Facebook leads by a significant margin: 36% of Americans say it is their most-used platform. The platform is especially popular with 35–54 year olds and among voters who supported either major candidate in 2024.

Among Trump voters, 40% cite Facebook as their main social media source, compared to 35% of Harris voters. Interestingly, younger platforms like TikTok and Instagram show a smaller footprint than might be expected: only 5% use TikTok as their main news source overall and just 11% of 18–24s do.

X draws 13% overall but skews strongly male (17% of men versus 8% of women) and right-leaning (17% of Trump voters vs 10% of Harris voters). That said, a significant proportion of Americans say that they don’t use any social media platforms for their news (26%), including 49% of those 65+. This likely reflects a mix of scepticism and disengagement, particularly among older voters.

Trust in Social Media News Is Limited and Deeply Fragmented

Trust in political news on social media remains weak. Only 8% say they completely trust what they see, while 32% say they “somewhat trust” it, leaving the majority either distrustful or ambivalent. Notably, 18% say they “completely distrust” it and another 32% “somewhat distrust” it.

Young people are paradoxically both the most reliant on and most suspicious of political news on social platforms. Among 25–34s, 21% say they completely trust what they see, far higher than the national average but 25% also say they somewhat distrust it. Meanwhile, Trump and Harris voters again show stark differences. 11% of Trump voters say they completely trust political news on social media, compared to just 5% of Harris voters.

Political Posting Is Rare But Not Uniformly So

Finally, when it comes to posting about politics, the American public is more laid back than engaged. 40% say they never post or share political news or opinions on social media, with only 10% doing so frequently and 24% occasionally.

The most politically vocal group on social media are men (13%), those aged 25–34 with 20% posting frequently and Trump supporters (13%). By contrast, 46% of women and 55% of those over 65 never post.

Non-voters, by contrast, are almost completely silent: 65% say they never post and only 2% post frequently. This reinforces a broader pattern of disengagement from political discourse among the politically inactive, both in terms of viewership and participation.

The American news landscape is not only fractured between TV and social media, it is stratified by age, gender and political alignment. Fox News remains a cultural anchor on the right, while CNN and MSNBC split the Democratic audience. Facebook remains dominant in the social sphere but younger platforms like TikTok and Instagram are emerging, particularly among under-35s, though they remain small players overall.

Trust remains the key limiting factor. Many Americans may use social media to receive political content but few place their full confidence in what they see. With so many people tuning out entirely, especially non-voters, the challenge for media outlets and political actors alike is not just how to inform but how to re-engage and regain trust.

Download the data tables for this poll.