Het sociale internet

[Cees Binkhorst]

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U kunt het oude testament nu wel weggooien, het nieuwe is binnen ;)

Groet / Cees

http://www.networkworld.com/columnists/2009/090809bradner.html
The Pew Internet and American Life Project has just published the latest
of its explorations on how the Internet is affecting us. The latest study
confirms what many observers have assumed -- the Internet, or at least
social Web sites, get more people involved in things political. That does
not mean that talk radio's days are numbered, but it may mean that there
are involvement processes that are more Internet-like and less
broadcast-like.

"The Internet and Civic Engagement" study starts off with the summary:
"Just as in offline politics, the well-off and well-educated are
especially likely to participate in online activities that mirror offline
forms of engagement. But there are hints that social media may alter this
pattern."

The study spends quite a bit of time with the first part of this summary
-- showing that "traditional political activities remain the domain of
those with high levels of income and education." I do wonder if the
T-Parties and healthcare town meetings of the last few months might have
demonstrated a less-stratified political discourse than this study finds.

In any case, the Pew study shows that the more someone earns, the greater
chance that he will be active politically, both in on-line activities and
in physical-world ways. Pew does find less of a difference between the
on-line political activities of younger people of different socio-economic
statuses than of older folks. Maybe because of the higher level of
Internet use among the young. But since the study does note that its
survey did not include cell phone users and since younger folk are more
likely to have moved to a cell phone-only mode of operation, the study
might actually underestimate the involvement of younger people in the
political world. The Pew folk think that the results might not be all that
different if they had included people who only used cell phones, but I
wonder, considering other studies of people who have dropped their land
lines.

The Pew study found "hints" that social networking sites will have an
impact, but I would have expected more considering the election we just
went through. The study showed that a third of all Internet users had a
profile on a social networking site -- that seems low to me considering
the mindshare that these sites seem to have.


http://www.pewinternet.org/~/media//Files/Reports/2009/The%20Internet%20and%20Civic%20Engagement.pdf
Just as in offline politics, the well-off and well-educated are especially
likely to participate in online activities that mirror offline forms of
engagement. But there are hints that social media may alter this pattern.

Summary of Findings
Whether they take place on the internet or off, traditional political
activities remain the domain of those with high levels of income and
education.
Contrary to the hopes of some advocates, the internet is not changing the
socio-economic character of civic engagement in America. Just as in
offline civic life, the well-to-do and well-educated are more likely than
those less well off to participate in online political activities such as
emailing a government official, signing an online petition or making a
political contribution.

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