Laura Carollo
Research expert covering cinema and film
Children and media in France - statistics & facts
Born and raised with (almost) unlimited access to technology, Generation Z and Alpha are the true “digital natives”. The access to electronic devices, such as smartphones or tablets, as well as smart technology and artificial intelligence, has become more widespread than ever among French children. As of 2024, almost 20 percent of them spent more than three hours a day in front of a screen. In 2022, children aged between one to six spent more than six hours on the Internet, more than in front of a television screen or a game console, and this figure only increased with age.
Rapid digitalization is fundamentally changing the way today's youth not only entertain themselves, but also inform themselves. As the amount of time spent in front of one or more screens continues to grow, many agree that offensive content should be more strongly regulated on the Internet.
Video consumption is mostly digital
The video consumption of young French people has become increasingly digital. While 88 percent of them still watch video programs on television, the share of children consuming video streaming content has exploded in recent years. In comparison, the share of children going to the cinema has stayed relatively stable. As of January 2024, cinemagoers aged 11 to 15 represented seven percent of the cinema audience.Young people still prefer to read on paper
Despite popular belief, young people are far from having given up reading; 35 percent of under-12s claim to read three or more hours a week, a figure higher than that observed among older respondents. Girls seem more prone to reading for leisure, but again, this value drops with age. However, the transition to digital is more difficult in the case of reading. More than half of French children read exclusively on paper, and most of digital readers use their smartphones, with eBook readers being used by only 22 percent of them in 2024.Audio content still in early stages
While audio books are still a hard sell for most young French readers, 76 percent of children aged four to six listen to audio content, including nursery rhymes, stories, audio books, edutainment content, and music. The children surveyed report that consuming audio content allows them to relax while helping them focus.A widespread access to social media
It is no surprise that most of these tech-savvy children report having at least one social media account. In 2022, 60 percent of girls had a TikTok account, slightly less than boys at 66 percent. However, this is not without danger as many testify to having been the victims of insults or bad experiences online.Rapid digitalization is fundamentally changing the way today's youth not only entertain themselves, but also inform themselves. As the amount of time spent in front of one or more screens continues to grow, many agree that offensive content should be more strongly regulated on the Internet.
