Intentional consumption, episodic content and news creators. The social media landscape feels like a very different place right now than it did just a few years ago. And that’s reflected in the type of content people want to see and engage with, especially from brands.
Our recent Q1 2026 Pulse Survey of over 2,000 social media users across the US, UK and Australia dug into an array of issues—from trust in news and brands to creators taking political stands to what they’re hoping to see and avoid from brands in 2026.
The data throughout this article comes from the Q1 Pulse Survey unless otherwise stated.
News and trust on social media
There has been an explosion of networks to monitor, and the rise of news creators and influencers has only further complicated the question of where people get their news. In fact, social media is now the most common source of news for almost half the population, putting it just ahead of TV as a news source.
This was an even bigger story for Gen Z (67%) and millennials (61%), who mentioned social media as one of their top three sources for news.
The top networks people reported using to find news were Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Reddit and Instagram.
When it came to how people wanted that news delivered to them on social platforms, it was mixed. In broad terms, a plurality (39%) of people reported that they want news organizations and individual reporters to be more active on social media to share breaking updates and engage with audiences. When you look at younger generations, it’s even more important for Gen Z (51%) and millennials (48%). This reflects the shift we’re seeing across social media, from just broadcasting to community building.
And as this desire for community increases, consumers are seeking a voice they can trust, which AI has had an impact on as it has become more ubiquitous.
Trust on social media stays the same amid AI impact
Though social is a huge area of growth for news platforms, the rise of AI video generation tools is giving people pause over what they can actually trust online.
In response to the prompt, “The rise of video generation AI tools has resulted in me having less trust in the news I see on social media,” 88% of people surveyed said they either strongly or somewhat agreed. The US had the highest proportion of people strongly agreeing with this statement (46%), but it rings true across demographics.
This drop in trust was not true of social media as a whole, with trust levels on social media remaining the same for the majority outside of this niche. Overall trust has increased for 16% of users, remained the same for 49% and decreased for 35% over the last 12 months. A majority of Gen Z (72%) say their trust has either increased or remained the same in that period.
Where trust did increase, it was mostly because of improvements to security and privacy, which drove 32% of survey responses or good content experiences (24%). Trust decreased due to claims of misinformation (30%) and unregulated AI slop (20%).
AI is impacting trust, but that impact is greater in some areas, such as news, than on social media as a whole. Right now, it’s impacting trust most in areas where people are looking for truth, so if you’re trying to communicate with your audience in an honest and transparent way, human-generated content is still the way to go.
Brands taking a stand on social and political issues
Over the last few years, consumers’ expectations on brands taking stands have evolved. But now creators are also in the hot seat for their past and present opinions. In practice, our data shows that while it’s not a majority, there is a general preference that brands take stands on social issues.
The most common response when it came to this question was the preference that brands take a stand on issues only if it directly relates to their product or industry. But about a quarter of users expect a clear stand on major public issues, no matter the industry.
The numbers were similar for creators, though there was a slightly greater number who said they actively dislike it when creators get involved in politics compared to brands (14% vs. 11%). Baby boomers were more likely to actively dislike when creators get involved in politics (31%) compared to brands (19%).
But what does taking a stand actually mean for purchase decisions?
Buyers avoid brands, but rarely go out of their way to support brands that share their values
Though a majority of consumers want brands to take a stand of some form, whether that was acting as a resource or some form of explicit statement, the effect that had on their buying behavior varied significantly:
- 32% of survey respondents said that political stances have zero impact on their purchasing decisions, with those based on price and quality alone.
- 29% said they would stop buying brands’ products if their values clash.
- Only 15% reported actively buying products to support a brand’s values.
When considering whether to take a stand on social issues, it’s generally easier when it’s an issue that directly relates to your brand’s business. But the individual decision depends on a number of factors. These could include the severity of the issue, frontline employee opinions, executive opinions and brand values, and it’s worthwhile to create a checklist of when a social issue meets a pre-defined set of criteria.
What consumers want on social in 2026
AI is appearing much more regularly on social media, and it’s affecting what people want to see on the networks. Our recent 2026 Social Media Content Strategy Report found that AI-generated content was one of the top things marketers planned to experiment with this year. But consumers are wanting more human-created content. And this disconnect feeds into the broader conversation about what consumers want from brands on social media.
Our Q1 Pulse Survey took a deeper look at how AI is affecting user behavior and perception across social media.
AI’s effects on social media
We’ve already spoken about the effect that AI has on trust in news, but it has a much broader influence. AI slop has been a major topic of conversation, and its rise has been controversial among social media users.
Its pervasiveness on social media is confirmed by our research, where 56% of respondents reported seeing AI slop on social media often or very often, with 83% seeing it at least sometimes.
Baby boomers were the least likely to report seeing it often, with only 37% seeing it regularly and 19% claiming they never see it. However, this group also had the strongest negative reaction to AI slop, with 56% saying they would be very unlikely to interact with it if they saw it.
Gen Z had a more neutral outlook towards interacting with this type of content. 34% said they were at least somewhat likely to engage, while 40% were unlikely to do so. That said, they were also the most likely to unfollow, mute or block accounts because their content felt like AI slop, with 50% saying they have already done so.
This reinforces the lesson that if marketers and social teams are going to use AI in content creation, it needs to be done with intentionality. AI creation for creation’s sake is unlikely to resonate with customers.
It’s worth noting that negative effects from AI content creation can be mitigated in two ways. Keep a human involved at every step of content production, and label AI content, as it’s unlabeled AI content that people object to most.
Consumer desires for brands on social media in 2026
Speaking of what resonates with customers, we’ll finish on what they want from brands overall on social media this year.
66% of people said they feel more selective about the content they engage with compared to a year ago, but what does that selectivity look like?
There’s a clear desire for intentional content consumption. The top responses all share that as a theme, whether it’s disconnecting and reducing screen time, logging in with purpose or consuming content that supports self-improvement.
Gen Z (15%) was the least likely to select disconnecting/reducing screen time with baby boomers the most likely (29%). Gen Z also wanted to create more content and consume less at a higher rate than every other demographic (11%).
This quest for deliberate consumption transferred over to what people want to see from brands on social media. Educational content was the #1 content type all generations want to see from brands.
Community was also a big focus for consumers, with 27% saying they want brands focused on this content.
Brands need to lean into this moment of intentionality by creating content that brings people together. Consumers are focused on entertainment, education and building community, so lean into that, especially if it can be combined into a format that also resonates. For example, an educational piece from a front-line employee, or behind-the scenes-content from the making of episodic content both have a higher likelihood of resonating.
Authenticity over automation
Technology has never been more capable of generating content, yet users have never been more desperate for human connection. As our Q1 Pulse Survey reveals, the era of passive scrolling is giving way to intentional consumption. Whether it’s blocking AI slop or recoiling from engagement bait, the message to brands and creators is unanimous: quality, authenticity and community all trump volume.
Organizations must pivot from being broadcasters to reliable resources. Brands need to follow a three-pronged strategy for the year ahead:
- With trust in news and digital content wavering, labeling automated content is crucial for brands to connect with their audiences.
- Audiences crave educational content, so brands should focus on providing tangible value rather than just joining the conversation.
- While consumers expect brands to have values, these stands resonate most when they are rooted in your brand’s actual industry and expertise.
Ultimately, social media in 2026 rewards the deliberate, and brands that favor automated shortcuts over community building risk being permanently ignored by a more selective, skeptical audience.
For more insights on what consumers want to see from brands, as well as what marketers have planned for the year ahead, download the 2026 Social Media Content Strategy Report.
