|
Four
Million
Americans
65
and
Up
Are
Online
Sending
Email,
Seeking
Important
Information
The
new
report
also
reveals
that
age
55
is
the
"gray
gap"
dividing
line
Click
for
pdf
copy
of
full
report
Sept.
10,
2001
-
Only
15%
of
those
aged
65
and
older
go
online,
but
as
a
group
they
are
fervent
users
of
the
Internet
who
love
email
and
often
use
the
Web
to
gather
important
information
such
as
material
to
help
them
manage
their
health.
This
extraordinary
Internet
cohort
has
some
special
characteristics.
Many
wired
seniors
are
newcomers
to
the
Internet
who
have
been
coaxed
into
going
online
by
their
children
or
grandchildren.
Once
they
have
logged
on,
many
become
eager
Internet
users.
They
are
more
likely
than
younger
Americans
to
be
online
on
a
typical
day
and
seniors
are
quite
clear
about
the
virtues
they
see
in
the
Internet.
The
most
fervent
wired
seniors
say
it
has
helped
them
connect
better
to
loved
ones
and
makes
it
easier
get
the
information
they
seek.
The
five
top
uses
of
the
Web
by
senior
citizens
are:
using
email,
looking
up
hobby
information,
seeking
financial
information,
reading
the
news,
and
checking
weather
reports.
Many
of
these
findings
are
based
on
a
special
analysis
by
the
Pew
Internet
&
American
Life
Project
of
the
4,335
phone
interviews
it
conducted
across
the
nation
with
seniors
last
year.
Some
670
of
them
are
Internet
users
and
the
Project
examines
their
online
behavior
and
feelings
about
the
Internet
in
a
report
called
"Wired
Seniors:
A
fervent
few,
inspired
by
family
ties."
As
a
distinct
cohort,
wired
seniors
look
like
the
early
Internet
population.
About
60%
are
men
and
about
40%
are
women.
Wired
seniors
are
more
likely
than
their
offline
peers
to
be
married,
highly
educated,
and
enjoying
relatively
high
retirement
incomes.
"Wired
seniors
may
be
small
in
number,
but
they
make
up
for
that
by
their
enthusiasm
for
doing
things
online,"
says
Susannah
Fox,
Director
of
Research
for
the
Pew
Internet
&
American
Life
Project.
"More
than
any
other
age
group,
wired
seniors
see
the
Internet
as
a
way
to
keep
in
touch
with
family
members."
Here
are
some
of
the
other
findings
highlighted
in
the
report:
Wired
seniors
cite
family
ties
as
the
prime
reason
for
going
online:
84%
of
wired
seniors
say
they
first
got
Internet
access
for
reasons
unrelated
to
work
or
school.
Of
those,
48%
say
they
were
encouraged
to
do
so
by
family
members
-
a
higher
percentage
than
any
other
age
group.
Another
45%
say
they
first
got
Internet
access
because
it
was
something
they
personally
wanted
to
do.
Very
few
wired
seniors
who
first
got
online
for
personal
reasons
say
that
they
were
encouraged
by
friends
to
get
access.
Many
older
Americans
are
resistant
to
the
Internet's
allure:
Only
21%
of
Americans
over
the
age
of
65
say
they
use
a
computer
on
"at
least
an
occasional
basis,"
compared
to
59%
of
their
closest
peers
(age
50-64)
and
64%
of
all
Americans.
Fully
81%
of
people
who
say
they
definitely
will
not
go
online
are
over
50.
Fifty-six
percent
of
those
over
age
65
say
they
will
definitely
not
go
online,
compared
to
just
6%
who
say
they
definitely
plan
to
go
online.
A
significant
shift
in
Internet
access
occurs
around
age
55.
Some
52%
of
50-54
year-olds
go
online.
But
only
43%
of
55-59
year-olds
use
the
Internet
and
just
34%
of
60-64
year-olds
have
been
online.
A
scant
23%
of
65-69
year-olds
go
online
and
the
numbers
continue
to
decline
from
there.
The
Pew
Internet
&
American
Life
Project
is
an
independent,
nonpartisan
research
organization
fully
funded
by
the
Pew
Charitable
Trusts
to
examine
the
social
impact
of
the
Internet.
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