Is Social Media a Valid Way for Young People to Express Their Political Views?
Not Your Parents’ Politics, co-authored by Ioana Literat, looks at how young people are expressing themselves on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.
Social media has become a key space for young people to experiment with their political voice and to hone it through interaction with others. In Not Your Parents’ Politics, authors Ioana Literat, a professor of communication, media, and learning technologies design at Teachers College, and Neta Kligler-Vilenchik, a professor at Hebrew University of Jerusalem, argue that to consider social media as a serious space for youthful political expression, conventional expectations about the forms that political expression should take must be set aside.
According to long-standing criteria, political expression ought to be respectable, focused on facts and rationality, and detached and objective. By contrast, emergent political expression found on social media is humorous or cynical, colorful, and frequently infused with popular culture references. It is emotional and often profoundly personal. If this political speech is viewed through traditional lenses, it may not only be missed, but young people's relationship to politics can be misunderstood.
Grounded in empirical research on three case studies of youthful political expression on three different social media sites, Not Your Parents’ Politics sets the stage for a discussion, asking how the forms of expressive citizenship identified throughout the book might bolster—or hinder—democratic engagement. The authors consider what it means to take youthful political expression on social media seriously, and what the stakes are for political socialization and democratic participation.
Literat discusses Not Your Parents’ Politics with Columbia News, as well as other projects she’s working on and courses she is teaching.
How did you and your co-author come up with the idea for this book?
Neta and I came to this research collaboration from quite different starting points, though our interests eventually converged in a fascinating way. Neta’s background is in studying youthful political engagement. The field at the time was strongly marked by concerns about youth being politically disengaged, so Neta was interested in how digital media and popular culture could spark young people’s interest in civic and political issues.
I was interested in young people’s creative, rather than political, practices. Following my dissertation—which was about online creativity—I was observing different youth-focused platforms, with questions about digital creativity in mind, when I noticed these typically lighthearted spaces suddenly filled with political expression during the 2016 election. Young people were using these platforms to share their fears, hopes, and questions about what they saw as a landmark moment in their lives. Seeing this organic politicization of youth spaces sparked my commitment to understanding how young people express themselves politically through creative means online.
Coming from these distinct but complementary perspectives, Neta and I started collaborating on a series of research projects, and found out how much we enjoy working together, and how seamless and enriching our collaboration felt. After about six years of teamwork and publishing several articles, we took the opportunity to distill our research into a book, which felt like an exciting opportunity to make a more holistic argument and reach a wider audience.

Can you provide some examples from the book of how youthful political expression on social media differs from the traditional political voice found in pre-social media days?
Our book gives several vivid examples of how youthful political expression differs from traditional forms. On TikTok, young people created short videos lip-syncing Trump’s speeches, either celebrating or mocking him through creative editing and performance. On Instagram during the Black Lives Matter protests, young users created visually appealing “artsy activism guides,” combining aesthetic appeal with concrete action steps. On YouTube, they discussed climate anxiety through diverse creative formats like vlogs, gaming streams, tarot readings, and ASMR videos—making serious political content accessible through youth-centered genres.
These new forms of political expression may seem jarring or trivial to outside observers used to traditional political discourse. However, my research suggests that they represent valid and meaningful ways for young people to develop their political voice and engage with civic life through familiar modes of expression that resonate with their peers. Understanding and taking these forms of expression seriously is crucial for supporting youthful political engagement in contemporary democracy.
What are the implications of this newer, younger political expression for democratic engagement?
Looking at the democratic implications, I believe this new form of expression is significant but complex. The positive side is that social media provides youth a space to develop their political voice through well-known modes of expression. This can lower barriers to participation, and help young people see themselves as valid political actors. However, there are real challenges: This expression can sometimes be performative rather than substantive, and takes place on profit-driven platforms, which may amplify extreme content.
As we argue in the book, the solution isn't to dismiss youthful political expression, but to better support young people in engaging constructively while developing skills to navigate these spaces. Democracy needs both traditional rational discourse and new forms of expressive citizenship that resonate with younger generations. The key is finding ways to harness the mobilizing power of youthful political expression while addressing its limitations.
What else are you working on now?
I’m still working with my students at the Teachers College Media and Social Change Lab on a couple of projects related to online political expression. In addition, I’m treading into AI-related research—especially as it pertains to young people and social media. In a paper we just submitted, my collaborators and I are looking into how young people on TikTok are discussing and debating the use of generative AI in higher education.
We analyzed nearly 1,000 TikToks and thousands of comments to explore topics like the commercialization of AI tools, ethical debates about using AI in school, and how students are forming new communities around these tools. It’s an intriguing view of how students are navigating AI in real time, one that highlights some big questions about learning, academic success, and the role of higher education in the age of AI.
What did you teach in the fall, and what are you teaching this spring?
This semester, I taught Technology and Culture, one of our core courses in the Communication, Media, and Learning Technologies Design program. In the spring, I’ll be teaching Theoretical Approaches to the Study of Communication and Culture, as well as our doctoral colloquium.
In parallel, year-round, I also have the privilege of leading a professional development initiative for doctoral students at Teachers College, which aims to both offer practical support and foster a sense of belonging. Doctoral mentorship has been a highlight of my work in academia, and I deeply value the opportunity to guide and learn from emerging scholars.
Moving forward, I plan to devote even more intentional time and energy to this work, making deliberate space—both temporal and emotional—to support students’ scholarly development and overall well-being. This means not just advising on research and writing, but helping students navigate the complexities of academic life, supporting their career aspirations whether inside or outside academia, and advocating for them within our institutions and fields. I am especially committed to mentoring students from historically marginalized groups who face additional barriers in academia.