German TikTokers more approving of China, Russia — survey
January 20, 2025
Germans who get their news via the social media giant TikTok, especially those of a younger age, are more likely to hold sympathetic opinions of Russia and China, a poll has concluded.
The poll, conducted by Allensbach Institute for Germany's business-focused Free Democrats (FDP), asked some 2,000 people at the end of 2024 about their views on matters ranging from whether they see China as a dictatorship to how they see Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Respondents were also asked about their opinion on the Covid-19 pandemic and its vaccines.
TikTok, which is vastly popular among younger users, is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance.
What were the findings of the poll?
The poll compared the political views of respondents who relied on newspapers and TV to get their news to those who were keeping updated with the latest via social media platforms, especially TikTok. It factored in the respondents' ages.
When asked whether they fully agreed that China was a dictatorship, 57% of German newspaper readers and 56.5% of public TV viewers agreed. This came up against merely 28.1% of TikTok users, with X, YouTube and podcasts users falling in between.
Although younger respondents generally agreed more with the statement — 67% of 16-29-year-olds — there was a similar split with the share of TikTok users in that age group agreeing with the statement dropping to 62%.
Some 40.2% of national newspaper readers fully agreed with the importance of Western backing to Ukraine against Russia's invasion. In contrast, only 13.6% of TikTok users agreed with the statement, and 29.8% of X users, the social media platform now owned by billionaire Elon Musk.
When presented with the statement that "Russia is conducting an illegal war of aggression against Ukraine," the overall agreement was over 78%. The figure dipped to 70% among 16-29 year olds.
When asked about the pandemic, 71% of respondents under 29 years old believed that vaccines had saved millions of lives. Among TikTok users, the number stood at 69%.
"Young people are far more vulnerable to information and TikTok plays a decisive role," said Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger, deputy chair of the foundation that commissioned the survey. "We mustn't allow Chinese and Russian misinformation to spread in our midst."
TikTok's influence sparks debate in Western nations
The poll comes in the midst of an ongoing debate over TikTok temporarily going dark in the US ahead of a federal ban recently upheld by the US Supreme Court, citing national security concerns.
On Sunday, incoming US President Donald Trump said he would issue an executive order delaying the ban as soon as he is sworn in on Monday.
There have been growing concerns in Western countries over Beijing potentially using TikTok to extract critical information on its users, as well as fears that Russia is using the platform to seed disinformation with the intention of advancing its agenda.
The poll also comes ahead of German elections scheduled for next month, where the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is polling in second place ahead of the vote.
In recent regional and European Parliament elections, the AfD proved especially popular among young voters, who make up the majority of TikTok users.
rmt/wd (dpa, Reuters)