CV-NEWS-FEED // A new survey by the Pew Research Center shows a significant trend among younger voters: Almost half of TikTok users between the ages of 18 and 29 use the platform to stay informed about political news.

The Pew Research survey found that about 48% of TikTok users ages 18 to 29 rely on the platform to stay up to date on political issues. In contrast, only 36% of 30 to 49 year olds and even fewer of those over 50 use TikTok for political news.

The survey found that nearly half of younger TikTok users say following political issues is a primary or secondary reason for their TikTok account, significantly higher than just 22% of 50-64 year olds and 24% of those over 65 who use TikTok for similar purposes.

In addition to political content, the survey highlights that “TikTok has increasingly become a source of news, bucking the trend on other social media sites.” About 50% of those under 30 use TikTok to get general news, while 41% of 30- to 49-year-olds and a smaller proportion of older users do so.

The study also shows that nearly half of all TikTok users view political content on the platform, with younger users encountering such material more frequently than older users.

Despite this, only about 10% of users across different age groups actually post anything political, suggesting that the majority of users prefer to consume political content rather than contribute.

As CatholicVote previously reported, the House of Representatives passed a bill in March that would require TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to either sell the social media platform to an American company or face a ban from U.S. app stores.

President Biden signed the law in April, but TikTok has since filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government in response to the potential ban.