On blogging

The Pew folks have come up with yet another interesting report, this one on blogging. A summary of their findings:

Blogging is bringing new voices to the online world.

Telephone surveys capture the most accurate snapshot possible of a small and moving target.

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 keeping a blog 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.

Bloggers are avid consumers and creators of online content. They are also heavy users of the internet in general.

Bloggers are major consumers of political news and about half prefer sources without a particular political viewpoint.

Bloggers often utilize community and readership-enhancing features available on their blogs.

Read the whole thing.