What are the top social media platforms used by each of Global Warming’s Six Americas?

Based on a Fall 2025 survey of 1,146 U.S. adults, the report finds that YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram are the most commonly used social media platforms across all segments of the 'Six Americas' framework. While 23% of Americans hear about global warming on social media at least once a month, this is most frequent among the 'Alarmed' segment (43%). The authors suggest that climate communicators should strategically select platforms and prioritize video content to reach diverse audiences, while noting that platform algorithms may reinforce existing beliefs by exposing users to information aligned with their habits.

• YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram are the most frequently visited social media platforms for all Americans and across all six segments of the 'Six Americas' framework. Specifically, 72% of Americans visit YouTube, 64% visit Facebook, and 46% visit Instagram at least once per week.
• The 'Alarmed' segment of the Six Americas hears about global warming on social media more frequently than any other segment. While 23% of the general U.S. population hears about global warming on social media at least once a month, this figure rises to 43% for the Alarmed.
• While some platforms like Facebook, Nextdoor, Pinterest, Threads, WhatsApp, and X/Twitter show no difference in usage frequency across the Six Americas segments, differences exist in the use of other platforms such as Bluesky, Instagram, LinkedIn, Reddit, Snapchat, TikTok, Truth Social, and YouTube.
• The report highlights that social media algorithms likely create information silos, where the 'Alarmed' may see content supporting climate action while the 'Dismissive' may encounter climate-skeptical information.

APA

Ettinger, J., Fine, J., Myers, T., Kotcher, J., Carman, J., Rosenthal, S., Leiserowitz, A., & Maibach, E. (2026). What are the top social media platforms used by each of Global Warming’s Six Americas? Center for Climate Change Communication. https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/all/what-are-the-top-social-media-platforms-used-by-each-of-global-warmings-six-americas/

Chicago

Ettinger, J., J. Fine, T. Myers, J. Kotcher, J. Carman, S. Rosenthal, A. Leiserowitz, and E. Maibach. What are the top social media platforms used by each of Global Warming’s Six Americas? Center for Climate Change Communication, 2026. https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/all/what-are-the-top-social-media-platforms-used-by-each-of-global-warmings-six-americas/.

Wikipedia

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BibTeX

@techreport{ettinger2026what, author = {Ettinger, J. and Fine, J. and Myers, T. and Kotcher, J. and Carman, J. and Rosenthal, S. and Leiserowitz, A. and Maibach, E.}, title = {{What are the top social media platforms used by each of Global Warming’s Six Americas?}}, institution = {Center for Climate Change Communication}, year = {2026}, month = sep, url = {https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/all/what-are-the-top-social-media-platforms-used-by-each-of-global-warmings-six-americas/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }