Trends in blogging

Pew Internet Report / Survey findings released July ‘06
“Eight percent of internet users, or about 12 million American adults, keep a blog. Thirty-nine percent of internet users, or about 57 million American adults, read blogs.”

Bloggers: summary of findings at a glance

• Contrary to the impression created by the press attention on political blogging, just 11% of bloggers say they focus mainly on government or politics.
• The blogging population is young, evenly split between women and men, and racially diverse.
• Relatively small groups of bloggers view blogging as a public endeavor.
• The main reasons for blogging are creative expression and sharing personal experiences.
• Only one-third of bloggers see blogging as a form of journalism. Yet many check facts and cite original sources.

Source: Lenhart, Amanda and Susannah Fox. Bloggers: A portrait of the internet's new storytellers Washington, DC: Pew Internet & American Life Project, July 19, 2006. (http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/186/report_display.asp)