Jeffrey Gottfried

About three-quarters of U.S. adults (77%) support in-class cellphone bans for middle and high school students. This finding marks the second consecutive year of rising support for the policy. Just 18% say they oppose such a ban, while 6% are unsure. And for the first time, more Americans now support than oppose a ban on students using cellphones during the entire school day. About half of U.S. adults (48%) back “bell-to-bell” school cellphone bans for middle and high school students, up from 36% in 2024.

Nearly six-in-ten U.S. adults support banning anyone under the age of 16 from using social media sites, according to a new Pew Research Center survey. The survey comes as governments around the world weigh new restrictions on teens’ use of social media. About one-in-five adults oppose banning those under 16 from using social media. And roughly a quarter are unsure, according to the survey conducted May 26-June 1, 2026.

Artificial intelligence is no longer a futuristic concept—it’s transforming everything from medicine to work to entertainment.

Warnings about the potential harms of social media for youth are everywhere—some even targeting speci

Even as debates continue about the role of social media in our country, including on censorship and its impact on youth, Americans use a range of online platforms, and many do so daily. YouTube and Facebook remain the most widely used online platforms. The vast majority of U.S. adults (84%) say they ever use YouTube. Most Americans (71%) also report using Facebook.

Online scams and other internet crimes are skyrocketing, with a record $16.6 billion in losses reported to the FBI in 2024. The federal government, banks and companies are all sounding alarms.

With artificial intelligence no longer the stuff of science fiction, its benefits and risks are being debated by everyone from casual observers to scholars.

Social media platforms faced a range of controversies in recent years, including concerns over misinformation and data privacy. Even so, US adults use a wide range of sites and apps, especially YouTube and Facebook. And TikTok – which some Congress members previously called to ban – saw growth in its user base. According to a Pew Research Center survey of 5,733 U.S. adults conducted May 19-Sept. 5, 2023:

Despite negative headlines and growing concerns about social media’s impact on youth, teens continue to use these platforms at high rates—with some describing their social media use as “almost constant." Here’s a look at the key findings related to online platforms:

• YouTube continues to dominate. Roughly nine-in-ten teens say they use YouTube, making it the most widely used platform measured in our survey.

It is no secret that, in an information environment characterized by deep tensions between President Donald Trump and national news organizations, Americans are divided in their trust of the news media. A new Pew Research Center exploration of more than 50 different surveys conducted by the Center – combined with an analysis of well over 100 questions measuring possible factors that could drive trust in the news media – confirms that in the Trump era nothing comes close to matching the impact of political party identification. On item after item, Republicans consistently express far greater