Young People and News: A Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

Exploring how young people engage with, share, and are influenced by news has long captivated academic interest. It is crucial for comprehending how young people are informed and develop critical thinking skills amid evolving media landscapes, and for predicting potential impacts on the industry and democracy. Given the increasing complexity of the news field, this paper conducts a systematic literature review from 2010 to 2022, focusing on journals within SCImago’s top 100 list for journalism, media, and communication. The review categorises the 232 academic papers based on origin, methods, and types of youth studied. First, this article systematises geographical origin, methods used, ages and types of youth studied in the 232 academic papers comprising the final sample. Second, it summarises key findings concerning how the most cited papers frame “youth” and “news”. Last, the article concludes by pointing out research gaps and possible future challenges. The study reveals that user studies are prominent, while production studies on news media reaching young people are scarce. There is a strong Western bias in current research, with a prevalence of U.S. college student survey studies. The terms “youth” and “news” lack in-depth exploration. This article discusses challenges arising from these findings.