The use of social media like Facebook to consume news is decreasing while messaging apps such as WhatsApp and Snapchat have been used more as netizens look for more privacy and become bored of fake news, a study found.

The study carried out by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism found usage of Facebook, the world's largest social network, for news is down 9 percent from 2017 in the United States and down 20 percent among younger audience.

Nic Newman, research associate at the Reuters Institute, said in the Digital News Report, "The use of social media for news has started to fall in a number of key markets after years of continuous growth."

"We continue to see a rise in the use of messaging apps for news as consumers look for more private (and less confrontational) spaces to communicate," Newman said.

WhatsApp, founded in 2009 and bought by Facebook in 2014, is more popular than Twitter in importance for news in many countries, the report said.

Some respondents, among the 74,000 respondents in 37 markets, still found news on Facebook but then posted items on a WhatsApp group for discussion with a closer set of friends.

WhatsApp and Instagram, also a unit of Facebook, have taken off in Latin America and Asia while Snapchat has made progress in Europe and the United States, the survey noted of regional news sharing differences.

The report also revealed that the average level of trust in the news has remained relatively stable at 44 percent -- a slight increase from 43 percent last year. However, only 23 percent said they trusted the news they find in social media.