New Zealanders big on blogging
29 Jul 2008
Kiwis are keen bloggers according to a new study which shows one in 13 New Zealanders has a weblog.
The survey, part of a world research project, names New Zealanders as the keenest bloggers out of 15 countries questioned. It also shows that Kiwis are big on internet use even though many haven’t yet got access to broadband.
Researchers at AUT University in Auckland asked 1430 people about their internet use as part of the World Internet Project, a California-run initiative that tracks how people around the world use the internet.
Blogger statistics
The survey is the first comprehensive study of New Zealanders' attitudes to the net and found that one in 10 internet users had a blog - about 8 per cent of the population.
The director of the World Internet Project, Dr Jeffrey Cole, said New Zealand had the highest rate of bloggers out of any of the 15. The other country that rated highly for blogging was Japan.
In New Zealand, people identifying as Asian were the most likely to report having a blog, with 31 per cent of Asians blogging, compared with 12 per cent of Pasifika people, 6 per cent of Pakeha and 2 per cent of Māori.
Most bloggers were under the age of 30.
Blogging is seen as a way of hiding your identity on the internet and means people can divulge information they might not share in person.
Online friends
The AUT phone survey, carried out in late 2007, found 78 per cent of New Zealanders used the internet.
While 25 per cent of Kiwis made friends online, those in their thirties were far more likely to meet up with their online friends than those in their teens - a statistic the director of the AUT survey, Allan Bell, said suggested the online safety message was getting through to internet-surfing teens.
Most users said the internet had increased their contact with family and friends, particularly those overseas. However 22 per cent said they now spent less face-to-face time with the family they lived with.
Internet use
Dr Cole said New Zealand's internet use compared very well with other countries, with New Zealanders reporting the highest internet penetration of any country surveyed this year. The internet was rated above television, radio, newspapers and other people as a source of information.
One area in which New Zealand showed surprising results was in broadband access. Out of 15 countries, New Zealand internet users reported the second highest percentage of people still relying on dial-up internet connections.
NZ ONLINE
Of the 78 per cent of New Zealanders who use the internet:
- 66 per cent have broadband
- 77 per cent check their email every day
- 28 per cent use social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook
- 25 per cent have made a friend online, and half of those have gone on to meet an online friend in person
- 13 per cent maintain their own website
- 10 per cent have a blog.
These topics may also be of interest to you
|
