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Between the Lines

Larry Dignan, Andrew Nusca and Rachel King

More than half of online adults use social networking sites

By | August 26, 2011, 12:38pm PDT

Summary: Although many might assume that social networking is just another way for teens to spread gossip, adults are gravitating to social networks more than ever before.

Much to the dismay of teenagers, a new survey from Pew Research finds that more than half of adults who actively use the Internet also use social networking sites.

Specifically, 65 percent of online adults subscribe to sites like Facebook, LinkedIn or MySpace (really, MySpace still?), which is up from 61 percent one year ago.

Mary Madden, a senior research specialist at Pew and co-author of the report, explained in a statement as to why adults are becoming more attracted to these sites:

The graying of social networking sites continues, but the oldest users are still far less likely to be making regular use of these tools. While seniors are testing the waters, many Baby Boomers are beginning to make a trip to the social media pool part of their daily routine.

Some of the survey participants were asked to described their experiences on social networks in one word. The most common response? “Good.”

There you have it — the future of social media just needs to be “good” in order to succeed.

Social networks still prove to be most popular among those who are age 30 and younger at 61 percent of the adults using these sites. That includes many people in their late twenties who were among the first to use Facebook when it debuted as a social network for college students in the mid-2000s.

Boomers between the ages of 50 and 64 accounted for 32 percent, which is a 60 percent increase from last year.

The survey, which was conducted via telephone in English and Spanish between April 26 and May with responses from 2,277 adults aged 18 and older, marked the first time that Pew found that least 50 percent of all adults online use social networking sites.

Another recent survey from Pew Research found that 71 percent of adults use video-sharing sites such as YouTube and Vimeo.

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Rachel King is a staff writer for ZDNet based in San Francisco.

Disclosure

Rachel King

Rachel King has no business relationships, affiliations, investments, or other potential conflicts of interest relating to the content posted in this blog.

Biography

Rachel King

Rachel King is a staff writer for CBS Interactive in San Francisco. Before serving as a contributing editor at ZDNet in New York City for two years, she previously worked for The Business Insider, FastCompany.com, CNN's San Francisco bureau and the U.S. Department of State. Rachel has also written for MainStreet.com, Irish America Magazine and the New York Daily News, among others. Rachel has a B.A. in Mass Communications and History from the University of California, Berkeley and a M.S. in Journalism from Columbia University, where she served as art director for the student magazine, Plated.

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Waves @ Between the Lines
Larry Dignan, Andrew Nusca and Rachel King Good story , Yea ! i get the first post . It's not just any adults that are filling up the social gaps , Google+ is developing into a rich diverse culture of professionals.

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