Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Politics on Social Networking Sites


Rainie, Lee and Aaron Smith. "Politics on Social Networking Sites." Pew Internet and American Life Project, Pew Research Center, September 4, 2012.

From the report: "Some but not most users of social networking sites say the sites are important for a variety of political activities:

  • 36% of SNS users say the sites are “very important” or “somewhat important” to them in keeping up with political news.
  • 26% of SNS users say the sites are “very important” or “somewhat important” to them in recruiting people to get involved in political issues that matter to them.
  • 25% of SNS users say the sites are “very important” or “somewhat important” to them for debating or discussing political issues with others.
  • 25% of SNS users say the sites are “very important” or “somewhat important” to them in finding other people who share their views about important political issues. In each activity, Democrats who use social networking sites are more likely than Republicans or independents to say the sites are important." Read more