News Report #4

“Social Network Sites Not Just for Teens”
Scott Nichols, PC World
January 15, 2009
http://www.pcworld.com/article/157753/social_network_sites_not_just_for_teens.html

Though it is thought that most people on the online social sites such as Facebook and Myspace are teenagers, a resent study by Pew Research shows that teens aren’t the only ones profiling themselves online. In February 2005, only 8 percent of adult Internet users claimed to use social networking sites, but that number has increased to 35 percent as of December 2008. If you breakdown the adult users by age social networks are still mostly populated by younger users. 75 percent of 18 to 24 year olds use social networking sites, with a still respectable 57 percent of 25 to 34 year olds also using sites. The percentage steadily decreases as the age increases, but there are still 7 percent of adults 65 and older have accounts on social networking sites, which is a surprise to most people. Myspace is considered the site of young teenagers, while Facebook is mainly used by college students, and LinkedIn is meant more for adults. At least those are the stereotypes. It turns out though, in reality 50 percent of adults who subscribe to social networking sites are Myspace users, with only 22 percent on Facebook, and 6 percent on Linkedin.
This article just shows how much technology has spread and how it connects us all. Seventy-five percent of my age group is a member of at least one social network. That does not surprise me. We are all connected by technology and I think it is great that even seven percent of adults age 65 and older are actually members of social networks. That proves that social networks aren’t just for the younger generation, it is for everyone.