During an age in which a universe of information is at most people’s fingertips, it is no surprise some are changing how they consume what they consider to be news. Pew Research Center analysts, with funding from the Knight Foundation, reported last week a study showing approximately 20% of Americans say they regularly get what they consider to be news from digital influencers — most of whom (85%) are found on Elon Musk’s social media platform X.

Only a slightly higher number of those who responded said they were Republicans than Democrats. This is a problem across the political spectrum.

“These influencers have really reached new levels of attention and prominence this year amid the presidential election,” Galen Stocking, senior computational social scientist at Pew Research Center, said. “We thought it was really important to look at who is behind some of the most popular accounts — the ones that aren’t news organizations, but actual people.”

Further, it was important to the study to understand who controls the companies through which most consumers receive their information. X was the standout, but Facebook and Instagram, YouTube and TikTok are also high on the list.

It’s always good to seek out perspectives or further analysis of genuine news. But that is helpful only when a person understands the difference between what they receive from a social media influencer and what they get from ethical news organizations with established reporting standards.

It is also important to understand the effects of social media echo chambers a consumer can curate so he or she hears and reads only what reinforces their own beliefs without ever being forced to employ critical thinking or self-examination. If you’re reading this, you likely already understand that.

But what about the increasing number of Americans who do not?

Encourage friends and family to understand the difference between consuming news and being influenced.

If we can’t learn to be more discerning than that, we’re in trouble.