NEW YORK—As many among us have come to realize, news plays a prominent role across the popular Twitter platform today. Overall, 23 percent of Americans use Twitter, and roughly seven-in-10 Twitter users (69 percent) in the U.S. say they get news on the site, according to a new Pew Research Center study that surveyed 2,548 Twitter users earlier this year.
 
For most of these Twitter news consumers, the site is an important way they keep up with the news—but not the most important way. Just 8 percent of Twitter users who get news on the site say it is the most important way they get news, while an additional 59 percent say it is important but not paramount, according to the Pew Research analysis. 
 
One key area of news people rely on Twitter for is breaking news. Fully 70 percent of Twitter news consumers say they have used Twitter to follow live news events, a significant increase from 59 percent who said this in 2015, according to Pew.
 
Twitter news consumers have generally positive opinions of the accuracy and amount of news they see on the site. Although only 7 percent of Twitter news consumers say they have “a great deal” of trust in the accuracy of information on Twitter, two-thirds say they have at least some trust in it.
 
This is far higher than the share of Americans (27 percent) who say they have at least some trust in the information they find on social media in general. In addition, two-thirds of Twitter users who get news there say they like the amount of news they see on the site, versus 32 percent who say they are worn out by the amount of news there.
 
As with so many other attitudes toward the media, however, significant partisan splits exist. Twitter news consumers who identify with or lean toward the Democratic Party express higher levels of trust in the news they find on the site than do those who identify with or lean toward the GOP. While 74 percent of these Democrats have at least some trust in the accuracy of news and information they find on Twitter, fewer Republicans (52 percent) say the same.

On the whole, Twitter news consumers are more likely than other Twitter users (and Americans overall) to be Democrats, as well as to have college degrees and be relatively young. Twitter news consumers also are more engaged with the site in general—46 percent say they visit Twitter every day.