Digital divide persists even as Americans with lower incomes make gains in tech adoption
The shares of Americans in each income tier who have home broadband or a smartphone have not significantly changed from 2019 to 2021.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Internet and Technology
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Experts Doubt Ethical AI Design Will Be Broadly Adopted as the Norm Within the Next Decade
A majority worries that the evolution of artificial intelligence by 2030 will continue to be primarily focused on optimizing profits and social control. Still, a portion celebrate coming AI breakthroughs that will improve life.
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Mobile Technology and Home Broadband 2021
Smartphone ownership and home broadband adoption are up slightly since 2019. And 30% of Americans say they at least sometimes experience problems connecting to the internet at home.
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34% of lower-income home broadband users have had trouble paying for their service amid COVID-19
Some 15% of all home broadband users in the U.S. say they have had trouble paying for their high-speed internet service during the pandemic.
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Americans and ‘Cancel Culture’: Where Some See Calls for Accountability, Others See Censorship, Punishment
U.S. adults explain – in their own words – what they think cancel culture means.
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Americans divided on whether Trump should be permanently banned from social media
Some 49% of U.S. adults say Donald Trump’s accounts should be permanently banned from social media, while half say they should not be.
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70% of U.S. social media users never or rarely post or share about political, social issues
Only 9% of adult social media users say they often post or share things about political or social issues on social media.
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Social Media Use in 2021
A majority of Americans say they use YouTube and Facebook, while use of Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok is especially common among adults under 30.
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Partisan differences in social media use show up for some platforms, but not Facebook
Democrats are about 10 percentage points or more likely than Republicans to say they ever use Instagram, Twitter, WhatsApp, LinkedIn or Reddit.
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7% of Americans don’t use the internet. Who are they?
Today, 25% of adults ages 65 and older report never going online, compared with much smaller shares of adults under the age of 65.
