A new News Literacy Project report shows what years of lopsided coverage and partisan framing have produced: an entire generation that doesn’t buy what the mainstream press is selling. Teens ages 13–18, who live in the most information-saturated era in history, overwhelmingly view the news media as untrustworthy, biased, and often dishonest.
The report opens with a blunt assessment:
“A majority of teens (84%) offered a negative word to describe news media… including ‘Fake,’ ‘Crazy,’ ‘Boring,’ ‘Biased’ and ‘Sad.’”
Those negative words weren’t vague sentiments. They were specific accusations. The largest category (19%) used terms tied to deception:
“Fake,” “False,” “Lies,” “Misleading,” and “Untrustworthy.”
For decades, legacy media insulated itself from criticism while openly choosing sides in cultural and political battles. Teenagers have grown up watching that play out in real time across social platforms and raw, unfiltered sources. They see the contrast, and they no longer give the press the benefit of the doubt.
The NLP report makes clear the depth of the credibility collapse. When asked what journalists do well, the largest “positive” response group wasn’t positive at all:
“81 teens said journalists do well at lying and deceiving… including ‘Telling lies,’ ‘Reporting fake news,’ ‘Overexaggerating,’ ‘Spreading misinformation,’ and ‘Gaslighting.’”
And when invited to describe what journalists should improve, teens overwhelmingly landed on the obvious:
“Telling the truth,” “Fact checking,” and “Not lying.”
Even more striking, teens think unethical newsroom behavior is routine. The report notes:
“Half of teens believe journalists make up details, such as quotes… and 6 in 10 believe journalists take photos and videos out of context.”
This is the predictable outcome of a media ecosystem that long ago abandoned even the pretense of neutrality. Today’s teens have unprecedented access to competing information sources, raw footage, independent journalists, and direct statements from public figures. When they compare that to how corporate media packages the news, the disconnect is obvious.
The result? A collapsing trust environment—and a generation that sees the legacy press not as a watchdog, but as just another political actor.
As the report bluntly summarizes:
“Teens consistently demonstrated the belief that unethical behaviors… are more common than standards-based practices.”
The media spent years lecturing the public. Now the youngest Americans are lecturing back.
https://legalinsurrection.com/2025/12/teens-say-media-is-fake-biased-and-untrustworthy/