Demographic Divides in Political Content Exposure on Facebook
Only 18% of Facebook feeds are political, but disparities by age, gender, race are stark.
Deep Dive
A decade-long study of over 1,100 US Facebook users found political content makes up just 18% of potential information diets, but this average hides significant and persistent disparities across age, gender, and racial lines. Meta's 2018 "Meaningful Social Interactions" update dramatically increased political content's share by contracting non-political posts.
Key Points
- Political content is only 18% of users' potential Facebook information diet, far lower than commonly assumed
- Significant demographic divides: older, male users see more political content; women and Black users see more left-leaning posts
- Meta's 2018 'Meaningful Social Interactions' algorithm update actually increased political content share by reducing non-political posts
Why It Matters
Highlights how platform design choices can unintentionally amplify political divides, especially across demographic groups.