Social media use and generational support for democracy in Australia

There is a persistent narrative that the younger generations are less supportive of democracy than the older and that this is explained by their use of social media. Using nationally representative data from both the 2025 Australian Election Study and previous waves to critically examine this proposition, we ask three questions. First, do the generations show different levels of ‘diffuse’ and ‘specific’ support for democracy? Second, are different patterns of media consumption across generations associated with positive or negative views of democracy? Third, does social media use in particular account for any observed variations? Our results confirm observable generational differences in media exposure and support for democracy, while suggesting caution should be exercised in making generalisations. We find that as expected the young are less supportive of democracy than the old, especially since the early 2000s. However, we also find few effects on trust in politicians and significant variations in how media use affects attitudes toward democracy in 2025, with Millennials and Boomers negatively impacted by social media while Gen X and Gen Z are not. Our research contributes to a better understanding of the generational impacts of the ongoing process of mediated political engagement on attitudes toward liberal democracy, especially as an emergent Gen Z takes on a distinct political identity.