Scandals and teen dropoff weren't enough to stop Facebook's growth

This is an excerpt from a story delivered exclusively to Business Insider Intelligence Digital Media Briefing subscribers. To receive the full story plus other insights each morning, click here.The world's largest social network is now even larger: Facebook reported 2.4 billion monthly active users (MAU) in Q1, per its earnings released Wednesday.That's up 2.5% from 2.3 billion in Q4 2018, and up 8.2% year-over-year (YoY) from 2.2 billion in Q1 2018. Likewise, Facebook grew its daily active users (DAU) to 1.56 billion, up 2.7% from last quarter and up 7.8% YoY.Overall, Facebook now boasts 2.7 billion monthly users across its family of apps. That includes Messenger, WhatsApp, Instagram, and core Facebook, with 2.1 billion of those people accessing one of the apps every day. Here's a rundown of Facebook's user growth by region: US & Canada. Facebook added 1 million MAU in the quarter, totaling 243 million in the region. DAU were flat with Q4 2018 at 186 million.Europe. Facebook added 3 million MAU (to 384 million) and grew DAU by 4 million (to 286 million).Asia-Pacific (APAC). Facebook added 34 million MAU (to 981 million) and 33 million DAU (to 600 million).Rest of World (ROW). Facebook added 18 million MAU (to 768 million), with DAU up by 12 million (to 490 million). Most of Facebook's user growth is coming from regions outside of the US, Canada, and Europe, although it's still adding users in those regions. If you ask US teens, whose social media preferences can be considered a bellwether, Facebook isn't even their second favorite social platform. As of 2019, teens prefer Snapchat and Instagram to Facebook by a long shot, according to Piper Jaffray.And in 2018, 51% of US teens ages 13-17 said they used Facebook, down from 71% in 2015, per Pew. But despite the declining use among US teens, core Facebook continues to add users worldwide — particularly in non-Western regions. In Q1, the vast majority of Facebook's new users came from APAC and ROW regions, for instance.And while Gen Z declares Facebook to be irrelevant, older generations in the US remain bought in: Facebook remains highly popular among US adults ages 25-29 (84% say they use it) and 30-49 (79%), per Pew. That could account for the social network's steady growth in mature Western markets. Users are likely becoming increasingly inured to Facebook's continuous state of scandal. In the first three months of 2019 alone Facebook has had several major privacy incidents — accidentally leaking over a million Instagram user's emails, difficulty curbingwhite supremacist content, a pending $3 to $5 billion fine from the FTC.And over the last few years, they've faced scandals ranging from election interference to massive breaches of user privacy. Still, these scandals seems to matter less and less to users, and just as Facebook investors remain undeterred, users may be growing numb to the constant turmoil as well.Alternatively, Facebook may simply be so entrenched that habitual users, whether or not they care about privacy scandals, feel they can't quit the site, as TechCrunch's Josh Constine noted. Interested in getting the full story？ Here are two ways to get access: 1. Sign up for the Digital Media Briefing to get it delivered to your inbox 6x a week. >> Get Started2. Subscribe to a Premium pass to Business Insider Intelligence and gain immediate access to the Digital Media Briefing, plus more than 250 other expertly researched reports. As an added bonus, you'll also gain access to all future reports and daily newsletters to ensure you stay ahead of the curve and benefit personally and professionally. >> Learn More Now