Pew Research Center survey reports, demographic studies and data-driven analysis
Podcasts Proliferate, But Not Mainstream
Nearly one in five internet users (19%) has downloaded a podcast to listen to or view later — up from 12% in 2006. But podcasting has yet to become a fixture in the everyday lives of internet users, as very few download podcasts on a typical day.
E-Patients: Chronically Ill Seek Health Information Online
More Americans are making a habit of using the internet to gather health information as broadband adoption increases. But personal motivation is also a powerful factor, as those with chronic diseases are more likely to search for and make decisions about health care online.
Search Soars, Challenging Email as a Favorite Internet Activity
The percentage of internet users who use search engines on a typical day has been steadily rising from about one-third of all users in 2002, to a new high of just under one-half (49%).
No Longer in the News, Earthquake Survivors Face a Painful Recovery
Media focus in China turned away weeks ago from the May 12 earthquake to the Beijing Olympics, but a journey through the heart of the destruction reveals the immense task faced by the people of Sichuan, already poor, to recreate their lives.
Home Broadband Adoption 2008
Even as many broadband users opt for premium services, access stalls among low-income Americans
Politics Goes Viral Online
Already in this campaign season, more Americans — 46% — have gone online to get political news and campaign information than in all of 2004.
Tracking China’s Earthquake on TV and the Internet – Part II
In a second dispatch, our Beijing correspondent reports that Chinese TV is back to being the voice of the government. Meanwhile, the internet has become a more wild-west version of itself, with a virtual explosion of content that runs the gamut from informative to creative, irresponsible, angry, maudlin…
The Online Mall: How People Do – and Don’t – Use the Internet in Making Purchasing Decisions
A new Pew Internet Project study finds that going online helps people sort through product choices, but it is not the place where people usually close the deal for housing, cell phones or even music.
Tracking China’s Earthquake on TV and the Internet
While the internet proved to be a faster and more varied source of news about the disaster, Chinese television reports have shown an unprecedented absence of censorship: “The faces in these productions tell everything. The soldiers are young; the grief is raw; the eyes are desperate.”
Writing, Technology and Teens
Most teenagers spend a considerable amount of their life composing texts, but they don’t regard most of the material they create electronically as real writing. Does e-communication help – or hurt – students’ writing skills?
