Publications

The ability of governments and law enforcement agencies to monitor the public using facial recognition was once the province of dystopian science fiction. But modern technology is increasingly bringing versions of these scenarios to life.

How many U.S. adults use the internet? There are a lot of sources with answers to this question. Yet these different sources can be tricky to reconcile.

Most cellphone-using teens say their phone is a way to pass time. Similarly large shares use their phone to connect with others or learn new things.

A median of 65% across 11 emerging economies say it is the government’s responsibility to ensure equal access to reliable internet service.

Smartphone users in emerging economies – especially those who use social media – tend to be more exposed to people with different backgrounds and more connected with friends they don’t see in person.

Black and Hispanic adults remain less likely than whites to own a computer or have high speed internet at home. But smartphones are helping to bridge these differences.

Well before the 2020 election, many U.S. social media users are already exhausted by how many political posts they see on these platforms.

Around one-in-five U.S. adults say they use Twitter. Users tend to be younger and to have more education and higher incomes than adults overall.

Negative views of technology companies’ impact on the country have nearly doubled since 2015, from 17% to 33%.

As mobile devices have become more widespread, the share of American adults saying that they go online "almost constantly" has increased since 2015.