Ofcom’s Latest Media Literacy Research – 7th May 2025
At its Media Literacy Research Event on 7th May, Ofcom publicised findings from their Adults’ and Children’s Media Use & Attitudes reports. It also showed compelling video from their Adults’ and Children’s Media Lives research projects. The Children’s Media Lives project follows, as far as possible. the same group of 21 children aged 8 to 17, conducting filmed interviews each year to learn about their media habits and attitudes.
The topics in focus included children’s experiences of and attitudes towards the online world, the extent to which adults and children evaluate and trust the information they see online, and their use of and attitudes towards Artificial Intelligence.
Key findings:
- Over the past few years more 3-5 year olds have reportedly been using social media, although only a small proportion are doing so independently.
- Children in the CML study are increasingly watching ‘Brain Rot’ content.
- There has been an increase in children using AI tools and teenagers who are using AI are divided 50/50 over the extent to which it can be trusted.
- Children’s engagement with news remained limited and was almost exclusively seen on social media feeds
- Confidence in recognising advertising on social media has remained stable over the past few years; however the ability to recognise advertising on search engines has eroded.
- More children are finding online safety lessons at school very useful, but only 3 in 10 children over 8 can recall having regular lessons on online safety in school
You can read the Ofcom reports here:
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/media-use-and-attitudes/media-habits-children/childrens-media-lives
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