A matter of faith Studies in all areas have tried to get at the issue of whether the Internet qua Internet has powers that can change people. Concerns have arisen (and been challenged) as to whether Internet use fosters social isolation. The Southern Poverty Law Center, a group which defends victims of hate crimes, watched […]
Online Activities The Pew Internet Project asked not all the online activities questions during every day of surveying in 2000. Different activities have varying numbers of respondents. Email: N=13,946 users; was asked March-December 2000; Margin of Error is ±1%. Just for fun: N=13,946; was asked March-December 2000; Margin of Error is ±1%. Hobby information: N=12,378; […]
A portrait of the online Asian-American population Asian-Americans who speak English are the most wired racial or ethnic group in America.[1. The survey was conducted in English. Therefore, the term “Asian-American” in this report refers to self-identifying Asian-Americans who speak English.] They are also the Internet’s heaviest and most experienced users, compared to other groups. […]
Introduction Social scientists cite any number of indicators to illustrate that Americans’ level of civic engagement is on the decline. Membership in organizations whose health may be seen as an indicator of strong community involvement—such as the Parent-Teachers Association (PTA)—has declined steadily over the past several decades.[3.numoffset=”3″ Robert D. Putnam, op. cit. p. 57. About […]
Introduction Different types of online groups attract different types of Internet users and elicit different kinds of participation from members. People involved in medical support groups are different from people in hobbyist online communities. Those drawn to groups involved with civic engagement are different from those who belong to professional and trade groups. And the […]
Introduction The Internet is an unparalleled medium for global communication, but it also has the potential to give people more information about what is going on in their local community. On balance, however, the vast majority of Internet users say that the Internet is a useful tool for becoming involved in things going on outside […]
Introduction Cleveland, though not known as a hotbed of Internet activity, is taking some innovative approaches to using the Internet for economic and social purposes. Most prominently, the city is using approximately $3 million in revenue from cable fees to subsidize Internet access and computer training through community development corporations (CDCs). A number of CDCs […]
Net Joiners: The people who find groups on the Internet, then become members In addition to fostering chatter, the Net is drawing people to groups they had not previously encountered. In part of our survey we asked respondents about the online group they most frequently contacted via the Internet. We enquired whether they belonged to […]