Report · Health

Many Americans say a sizable share of their social feed is negative

Reading

About half of Americans (50%) say at least half of what they see on social media is negative or distressing, according to a Verasight survey conducted Feb. 28 to March 6, 2025.

A nearly equal share (48%) say less than half of their feed strikes them that way, including 16% who say none of it does, and another 2% don't use social media.

Topline

single choice

Topline distribution

Many Americans say a sizable share of their social feed is negative.

On average, what amount of your social media feed is negative and/or distressing?

  • 4 20.3%
  • 5 18.8%
  • 3 17.1%
  • 1 None of it 16.1%
  • 2 15.0%
  • 6 6.3%
  • 7 All of it 4.2%
  • I don't use social media 2.2%

2025 · base n 1,000 · +/- 3.5%

health

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Methodology

Full methodology
Mode
Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting
Field dates
2025-02-28 → 2025-03-06
Base (unweighted)
1,000
Margin of error
+/- 3.5%
Module
health

Source

Citation

Verasight SPSP Omnibus Survey #2025-010, fielded February 28-March 6, 2025, N=1,000 United States adults, +/- 3.5%.

https://verasight-spsp-2025.tiiny.co

Verasight survey methodology

How Verasight conducts surveys.

This page describes the Verasight general survey contract, separate from how the Data Library packages it. When a wave report is published, its field dates, sample sizes, and module breakdown are listed in that report.

Mode
Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting.
Population
US adults age 18+.
Sample design
Surveys are run as omnibus or single-topic waves. Omnibus waves are split into modules with their own respondent set, typically around one thousand respondents per module.
Field window
Each wave specifies its own field dates. Most omnibus waves field across roughly two weeks.
Weighting
Per-module weighting to CPS targets including age, race and ethnicity, sex, income, education, region, and metropolitan status.
Partisanship benchmark
Pew Research Center's NPORS benchmarking surveys, three-year running average.
Vote benchmark
2024 presidential vote population benchmarks.
Margin of error
Typically about plus or minus 3.4 to 3.6 percent per module at standard module sizes. Question-level MoE is recomputed when a base shrinks materially below the module baseline.
Reporting
The canonical report hub is reports.verasight.io. Verified legacy reports remain on their original hosts, and unpublished reports are marked pending.
Transparency
Verasight is a member of the American Association for Public Opinion Research Transparency Initiative.

The canonical report hub is reports.verasight.io; older reports may remain on verified legacy hosts.