gen z grew up with the internet. whether you think that’s good or bad is irrelevant.
the world wide web opened up to the public in 1993, half a decade before gen z in 1997, verifying the fact that gen z are the first true digital natives: the first to grow up fully immersed in the age of the internet.
as of late 2025, approximately 73% of the global population has access to the internet; of this, the age group 15-24 made up 79% (Statista Research Department, 2025). it would be an understatement to say that our generation dominates the internet. to tell you the truth, the internet dominates us.

around 96% of 13-17 year olds in the united states use social media. of that, 46% report being online “almost constantly” (Faverio & Sidoti, 2024). social media impacts young lives in many different ways: 9% argue that it is a good venue for entertainment, 5% say that it allows teens to get support, 4% say that it’s good for learning new things, and 7% say that it offers a valuable space for self-expression (Anderson & Jiang, 2018).

as an individual drawn to fashion and alternative styles, i would argue that the latter has influenced my life the most, in ways that only digital natives would recognize. the ability to self-express has been made incredibly accessible through the internet, in which you can (and are encouraged to!) explore identities both anonymously and publicly. the sea of information on social media trends and subcultures is endless; learning about and applying styles is as easy as scrolling Tumblr or Pinterest, finding music that reflects you only requires a few taps to search for playlist keywords on Spotify. having an presence online encourages curating a personal brand made up of these - and many more - components.