Gen Z Dubbed the 'Most Gullible Generation' Amid Rising Misinformation and Social Media Habits

Younger generations have always been accused of being too trusting, but now Gen Z is catching some serious flak as the so-called "most gullible" generation. The heat's coming from a new analysis of their media habits, and honestly, the evidence is a little hard to ignore.

It all kicked off when researchers showed a video of obvious voter fraud in Russia to over 3,400 American high schoolers. Out of thousands, only three managed to figure out the clip wasn’t filmed in the U.S. — a plot twist that makes even reality TV look subtle.

Despite being glued to their phones and raised in the wilds of the internet, Gen Z apparently struggles to tell fact from fiction online. This is especially awkward since more than half (about 63%) say they get their news from social media, while traditional TV news barely gets a look-in. Who needs Walter Cronkite when you’ve got TikTok?

With so much misinformation, satire, and AI-generated nonsense floating around, it’s no wonder Gen Z is getting lost in the sauce. The article even suggests they’re falling down conspiracy rabbit holes and questioning established institutions left and right. Maybe that’s healthy skepticism, maybe it’s just a sign you shouldn’t believe everything you read in the comments section.

What’s wild is that this isn’t even a partisan problem—both Trump supporters and his critics are apparently just as likely to fall for stories that fit their worldview. At this point, the only thing everyone can agree on is that it’s getting harder to know what’s real.

Gen Z has been called everything from the loneliest to the most tech-savvy, and now, the most ghosted. Still, with more information available than ever before, it seems the real challenge isn’t access, but knowing what (or who) to trust. Maybe the next viral challenge should be spotting fake news, not dance moves.