As Black History Month comes to a close, a new study and survey from Horowitz takes a deep dive into the media habits of Black-American Gen Zers and explores the habits brands need to understand for reaching that audience.
One key data point according to Horowitz Research’s FOCUS Generation Next 2023 report is that three in four (73%) Black Gen Zers watch TV content at least weekly. While a good amount of this TV content viewing happens on a mobile device, Black Gen Zers are more likely to watch on an actual TV set than any other screen. In fact, nearly 7 in 10 Black Gen Zers have a TV set in their bedroom, over-indexing compared to Gen Zers overall.
Like other Gen Z audiences, streaming is the main medium for accessing that content. Among Gen Z overall, Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime Video are the top streaming services used, and free ad-supported streamed TV services (FAST) are gaining traction.
The Horowitz study found that compared to Gen Zers overall, Black Gen Zers are more likely to use Tubi, Pluto TV, Starz, and BET+ – all platforms that have a wide selection of content catering to Black viewers. They also over-index for using traditional cable/satellite services, reporting higher weekly usage than Gen Zers overall. Movies, animated shows, dramas, and music-related content are the top genres consumed, and Black Gen Zers over-index compared to other Gen Zers for watching reality TV and talk shows/entertainment/gossip shows.
Almost all Black Gen Zers (86%) consume social media at least weekly. YouTube, by far, is the social media platform Black Gen Zers are most engaged with on a daily basis, followed by TikTok and Instagram. In fact, Black Gen Zers are more likely to be using Tik Tok, X, and Threads on a daily basis compared to Gen Zers overall.
Short-form content is an important part of their social media habits. Like most young people, 82% of Black Gen Zers engage with short-form content at least weekly. The power of professionally produced long-form content is underscored by the fact that, among Black Gen Zers — and Gen Zers overall — short-form videos of TV shows, movies, and other long-form entertainment is the second-most popular type of short-form content, following funny content/memes. While the smartphone is the device most-used for short-form content, nearly 1 in 4 Black Gen Zers enjoy watching non-TV, short-form content on the TV screen.
When it comes to gaming, 77% of Black Gen Zers play games on their phones, computers, or tablets at least weekly, and about half (51%) play on a dedicated gaming device, such as a console or VR headset. And, Black Gen Zers are more engaged than their counterparts with watching video game live streams and other gaming-related content such as on Twitch at least weekly (53%). Relatedly, Black Gen Zers are more likely than Gen Zers overall to be engaged in E-sports.
The full FOCUS Generation Next report provides a comprehensive look at Gen Z’s relationships and behaviors around video content and other information and entertainment, their relationships with brands, and what brands need to consider when looking to engage these politically aware digital natives. The survey was conducted in October 2023 among 812 Gen Zers (13-24 year-olds) in the U.S., with oversamples of Latinx, Black, and Asian. Data have been weighted to Census.
