Digital Activism Survey Report 2009

DEMOGRAPHICS
Late Twenty-Somethings Lead Teens in Activism
To better analyze the ages of our group of 122 respondents, we broke them into five-year ranges,
beginning with 11 to 15 and ending with 61 to 65 (see graph below). Among respondents, 26 to 30-yearolds
(purple bar) were by far the largest group, making up 28% of the total . 1 However, many other age
groups were well represented. The second-largest group, the 31 to 35-year-olds, made up 16% of the total,
and the other groups from age 21 to 50 contributed about 10% each. Not surprisingly, after age 50
responses decrease, with only 10 respondents in the 51 to 65 range. However, the real surprise is in the
lack of young people among the ranks of digital activists. There were only two responses within the age
range 11 to 20.
Figure 1: Age of Respondents
Does this mean that there are really more digital activists over 50 than under 15 Our sample isn't large
enough to say. However, the absence of young users in the activism space is inconsistent with other data
on youth internet use. Research by the Pew Internet and American Life Project, which provides the most
thorough (though geographically-limited) information on generational Internet use, confirms the suspicion
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