Gen Z Eschews Mass Media, Prefers Hyper-Targeted Forms of Media

Every single generation that was born prior to Gen Z tended to gravitate towards mass media, and this resulted in a rather homogenous global culture. In spite of the fact that this is the case, Gen Z is bucking that trend, and a recent report from Horizon Media highlights that. This report shows that traditional forms of mass media such as TV and print are just not giving Gen Z what they need, and their main focus tends to be social media.

With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that even in the world of social media Gen Z are using way more apps than Millennials. While Millennials and Gen Xers used at most two to three social media apps, Gen Z consumers are using a much wider range. Each app is meant to fulfil a specific function, such as Reddit being used for discovery, Telegram being used for privacy, Geneva being used for intimacy, and Twitch for live streaming.

This suggests that Gen Z is moving away from coalescing into a single culture, and are instead branching out into a wide range of subcultures. That’s unsurprising given that media has so many different avenues because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up facilitating the promotion of multiple voices that wouldn’t have made the cut when mass media was controlled by a chosen few.

It is telling that Gen Z consumers refuse to stick to a small set of apps even if many of them serve similar purposes. Additionally, influencer content might slowly become less useful than might have been the case otherwise. Gen Z consumers are looking for individualized and personalized experiences, and that will change the shape of things to come to a great extent.

As the newest generation enters adulthood and starts to command greater influence over the world at large, we might see these subcultures and forms of media consumption becoming commonplace. Single entities would no longer hold sway over entire industries, and that will be a welcome change.

Read next: Social Media Reach Rate Is Towards Its Decline, Facebook and Instagram Are Suffering Most From It
by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World