Among internet users, 4% use a service such as Foursquare or Gowalla to share their location with friends online. Usually by way of a smart phone, the location-based services alert others as to where you are and what you’re up to. Not surprisingly, young adults are the most likely to adopt the new “geosocial” technology. Nearly one-in-ten online adults ages 18-29 (8%) use location-based services to check in. Still less surprising is that only 1% of online adults ages 65 and older have checked in with such a device. Hispanics who use the internet (8%) are significantly more likely than whites (3%) or blacks (5%) to use the service, and online men (6%) are more likely than women (3%) to check in. Read More
Russell Heimlich is a former web developer at Pew Research Center.
