Transcript The State of the Internet and Politics, 2010 Overview of Pew Internet Project Research DCI Group April 14, 2011

The State of the Internet and Politics, 2010
Overview of Pew Internet Project Research
DCI Group
April 14, 2011
About the Pew Internet & American Life Project
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Title of presentation
Internet
and Politics
Funded by a grant from the Pew Charitable
Trusts
Part of the Pew Research Center, a non-partisan
“fact tank” in Washington, DC
Study of how technology is shaping society and
individuals
– Provide high quality, objective data to
thought leaders and policy makers
– Do not promote specific technologies or
make policy recommendations
Our research is based on nationally
representative telephone surveys of:
– Adults 18+ (teens data based on 12-17 year
olds)
– Drawn from dual-frame (landline + cell)
samples
– Includes Spanish-language interviews
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Key takeaways from our 2010 research
1. More than half of all adults took part in info seeking or political action
using online tools in the 2010 midterms, and the internet continues to
grow as a source of political news
2. “If you’re on, you’re in”. Interest in politics + access to basic social media
tools = engagement via social media (regardless of age or political
affiliation)
3. As in other venues (e.g. health, general news consumption) we see a
reliance on “people like me” to help evaluate info and make decisions
4. Led by young adults, mobile politics began to play a more prominent role
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The Big Numbers: 73 and 54
73% of internet users (representing 54% of all adults) went online to
get news or information about the 2010 midterm elections, or to get
involved in the campaign in one way or another
This includes anyone who did one or more of the following:
• Get political news online – 58% of online adults looked online for news
about politics or the 2010 campaigns, and 32% of online adults got most
of their 2010 campaign news from online sources.
• Go online to take part in specific political activities, such as watch
political videos, share election-related content or “fact check” political
claims – 53% of adult internet users did at least one of the eleven online
political activities we measured in 2010.
• Use Twitter or social networking sites for political purposes – One in five
online adults (22%) used Twitter or a social networking site for political
purposes in 2010
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Themes for 2010: As we see every year,
the internet’s role in politics is “bigger but
different”
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The relative value of the internet to politically
active citizens is increasing
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Use of online sources is up significantly among
nearly all groups since 2002
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The relative value of the internet to politically
active citizens is increasing
100%
% of internet users who get
political news online
80%
58%
60%
40%
40%
47%
20%
0%
13%
16%
15%
2002
2006
2010
Typical day
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Internet
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Americans hold conflicting views about the
internet’s impact
Majorities of internet users agree with the following statements:
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“The internet makes it easier to connect with others who share their
views politically” (esp. Latinos, political social networkers, young adults)
“The internet increases the influence of those with extreme political
views” (esp. Democrats & Tea Party detractors, no major political tech
differences)
“The internet exposes people to a wider range of political views than they
can get in the traditional news media” (esp. political social networkers,
those younger than 50, college grads)
“It is usually difficult for them to tell what is true from what is not true
when it comes to the political information they find online.” (declines with
online political engagement)
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Increasing reliance on “people like me” for
political information
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Themes for 2010: The changing face of
politically-engaged social networkers
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This is where I point out that you have to view
the internet in the broader political context
2008: “Hey Dad, check out my profile on BarackObama.com”
2010: “Son, I need you to get off the computer so I can see if there
are any Facebook updates from my Tea Party Patriots group”
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How voters used social networking sites and
Twitter in 2010
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35% of social networking site users (21% of online adults) used these
sites for political reasons in 2010
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Discover who friends voted for (18%)
Get campaign/candidate info (14%)
Post content related to campaign (13%)
Friend a candidate or other political group (11%)
Join a political group or cause (10%)
Start their own political group or cause (2%)
28% of Twitter users (2% of online adults) used Twitter politically in 2010
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Get candidate/campaign info (16%)
Follow election results in real time (12%)
Follow a candidate or other political group (11%)
Include links to political content in their own tweets (9%)
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Older adults: less likely to use SNS in general,
but just as active once they get there
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To the extent older adults used these sites,
they were as active as younger users
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Partisan splits from 2008 vanished in 2010
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Partisan splits from 2008 vanished in 2010
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Partisan splits from 2008 vanished in 2010
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Partisan splits from 2008 vanished in 2010
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Social media = “Faster and More Connected”
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Themes for 2010: The emergence of
mobile politics
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Mobile politics
26% of all American adults used their cell phones for political purposes in 2010:
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14% used their cell phones to tell others that they voted
12% used their cell phones to keep up with news about the election or politics
10% sent text messages relating to the election to friends, family members and others
6% used their cells to let others know about conditions at their local voting stations on election
day
4% used their phones to monitor results of the election as they occurred
3% used their cells to shoot and share photos or videos related to the election
1% used a cell-phone app that provided updates from a candidate or group about election
news
1% contributed money by text message to a candidate or group connected to the election like
a party or interest group.
Demographic groups with high usage rates include young adults, AfricanAmericans and those with some college experience or a college degree
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No clear partisan splits in the “mobile political
user” group
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Voting was evenly split (44%/44%) between Republican and Democratic
candidates
Party ID mirrors overall population, as does political ideology
– 27% Republican
– 35% Democrat
– 32% Independent
Evenly split on attitudes towards Tea Party movement
– 34% agree/strongly agree
– 32% disagree/strongly disagree
Went to polls in greater numbers than overall population, although one in five say
they did not vote
Democrats and Republicans engaged w/ their phones in similar ways, with
Democratic voters a bit more likely to:
– Text message others about the campaign
– Inform others that they voted using their cell phones
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Main differences relate to age, not political
attitudes
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Open for comments/questions!
name: Aaron Smith
title: Senior Research Specialist
email: [email protected]
web: www.pewinternet.org
twitter: @aaron_w_smith, @pew_internet
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