Young people enjoy stories in many different forms. The University of California, Los Angeles, studied the viewing habits of more than 1,500 Americans aged 10 to 24. Its 2026 report looks at what they like to watch. It also explores the characters they want to see.
YouTube was the top choice for stories, with 72.9% choosing it. Almost four in five said short videos can tell stories too. They also enjoyed television, films and video games. Going to the cinema was their favourite weekend activity for the third year in a row.
Many wanted characters with lives like their own and more stories about friendship and hope. Also, 55% wanted more characters whose brains work differently from most people's. This includes people with autism. Only 22.7% thought that screen stories about these differences usually showed life as it really is.
The study also asked about artificial intelligence, or AI. This technology brought different feelings: some young people felt very interested or excited, while others felt afraid or expected a bad future. The youngest group, aged 10 to 13, felt most positive about it.
