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The relationship between the two Occupies dates to 2011. "Central" is the name of Hong Kong's main business district. And the term "Occupy Central"-which has gained international renown over the last week-was coined a few years ago when Occupy Wall Street was gaining steam. In October 2011, soon after protesters began sleeping in Zuccotti Park, several hundred Hong Kongers created their own encampment outside the headquarters of HSBC, the world's second-largest bank. Calling their movement, "Occupy Central," they remained encamped there until September 2012, thus comprising one of the longest-running Occupy protests in the world.

A few months later, in January 2013, a law professor named Benny Tai proposed that protesters descend upon Central again, in the movement that became Occupy Central with Peace and Love (OCPL). At first glance, this new effort has little in common with the movement that started in lower Manhattan. OCPL is demanding electoral democracy: the people's right to choose the candidates who will run for chief executive of Hong Kong. Occupy Wall Street, by contrast, was born from frustration that America's electoral democracy was a sham because the country's radically unequal economic system concentrated power in the hands of financial and corporate elites.

But it's worth remembering that Occupy Wall Street never formulated specific demands. Its message was broader: that unaccountable elites-"the 1 percent"-had created a political and economic system that denied ordinary people a voice in their government and a chance at a better life. It was the breadth of this message that helped Occupy spread rapidly across the globe, as local activists adapted it to their particular circumstances.

And that's exactly what Hong Kong's new Occupy movement is doing today. Tai and his allies are not merely protesting a rigged electoral system. They are protesting the way China's government and Hong Kong's economic elite work together to empower themselves at the expense of the region's people. Earlier this year, when The Economist unveiled its "crony-capitalism" index-"the countries where politically connected businessmen are most likely to prosper"-it ranked Hong Kong number one. The territory also boasts one of the world's highest Gini coefficients, making it among the most economically unequal places on earth. As Jeffrey Wasserstrom of the University of California at Irvine and Denise Ho of the Chinese University of Hong Kong recently observed in The Nation, "The grievances of Occupy Central have much in common with those of Occupy movements worldwide: Hong Kong is a vastly unequal society, and government policies are seen as favoring real estate development over affordable housing, shopping complexes over little remaining farmland, and low taxation over more equitable redistribution."

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The Americans Who Inspired Hong Kong's Protesters

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The relationship between the two Occupies dates to 2011. "Central" is the name of Hong Kong's main business district. And the term "Occupy Central"-which has gained international renown over the last week-was coined a few years ago when Occupy Wall Street was gaining steam.

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World shows support for Hong Kong protests

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Demonstrations around the globe show solidarity with Hong Kong's "Umbrella Revolution"

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A torrent of tweets and Facebook posts is pouring out of Hong Kong documenting the "Umbrella revolution," but social media does not appear to be driving the protesters as it did the Arab Spring, also called the Facebook revolution.

"I don't think social media is playing a huge role in Hong Kong" said Adam Segal a China expert at the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonpartisan think tank. "Clearly, it allows [protesters] to capture images and spread them quickly, but it's not as if the protests were not going to be covered [by the media]."

Segal said that in Hong Kong there was already a strong political infrastructure that was mobilizing people and spreading the message.

"It was not like Arab Spring," he said, during which social media fueled protests in the Middle East by helping "convince people they were not alone."
Social media's role
Doug Young, a journalism professor at Fudan University in Shanghai and author of the book The Party Line: How the Media Dictates Public Opinion in Modern China, agrees that social media has not been a factor in spurring the protests.

"The thing about Hong Kong is it's an open society," he said. "It's not like China or many Muslim countries where everything it tightly controlled. People can organize the way they want and don't have to be stealthy."

But social media does offer a unique chance to view the protests and to document developments. According to data collected by Twitter, there were 1.3 million tweets about the demonstrations from Sept. 26 through Sept. 30.

Social media also documented the harsh crackdown on protesters by the Hong Kong police, images the likes of which largely did not emerge from the 1989 protests at Tiananmen Square. In Hong Kong, photos showing the use of riot gear, pepper spray, tear gas and police batons, as well as the detention of peaceful protesters were common.

Like Tiananmen, the Hong Kong protests may become symbolized by one powerful photo: a man holding an umbrella who is enveloped in a cloud of tear gas who is now being called "umbrella man."

Some are comparing the image to the iconic "tank man" image from Tiananmen Square. That image depicted a solitary man challenging a tank, blocking its way and apparently pleading for it to stop.

While China would like to erase any memory of Tiananmen Square it is clear the dramatic events from 25 years ago are not forgotten. One popular meme making the social media rounds superimposes umbrella man were tank man stood.

A user of Sina Weibo, also called Chinese Twitter, posted "Ti*n*men Echoes: H*ng K*ng."

Tiananmen demonstrated it wasn't necessary to have Twitter or Facebook to bring out a large crowd. On May 19, the day the Chinese government declared martial law, over a million people flooded the square, showing that word of mouth and fax machines could be used to great effect in rallying people to action.
2003 protests
In 2003, well before social media was widely used, hundreds of thousands took the streets of Hong Kong to protest the proposal of Article 23 of the Hong Kong Basic Law. Protesters said the law curtailed civil rights, and the article was shelved.

News and social media coverage of the Hong Kong protests are unlikely to go dark, as happened at Tiananmen when Beijing blocked Western media broadcasts and forbade reporters from taking pictures or videos.

Many Hong Kongers are using a mobile phone app called FireChat, which does not require a network connection to send messages, because it uses bluetooth technology.

So far the numbers of protesters in Hong Kong has been reported in the tens of thousands, but Segal thinks that number could approach a million over the National Day holiday.

Most worrying to Beijing is that calls for greater democracy in Hong Kong will spread to the mainland via social media. For now, however, the mainland media presents events in Hong Kong as illegal and a threat to stability.

"It's an imageless story," said Young. "Certainly [there are] not any sort of inflammatory photos."

And it's being tightly controlled online as well.
'Great Firewall'
China's efficient "Great Firewall," which allows the government to effectively censor the Internet has, for the most part, kept images and news from Hong Kong off the mainland's Internet. Popular platforms like Facebook and Twitter are blocked, and China has blocked access to the popular photo sharing application Instagram.

But the longer the protests go on, the more likely images and news from Hong Kong will seep into China, said Segal.

Some already have.

"Facing a strong opponent, we can only use umbrellas!" said a user on Sina Weibo.

Another said: "Let BJ see the light #umbrella revolution#", in an apparent reference to Beijing.

Young said he's seen oblique references to events on Hong Kong which utilized shorthand to avoid the censors.

On Sina Weibo and Tencent Weibo, another social platform, search results for "Occupy Central", a catch-all phrase for the Hong Kong protests, showed a page that said "according to relevant laws, regulations and policies, search results are not displayed".

"Clearly the Chinese government is worried about it," said Segal. "I'm sure they'll have to censor 'umbrella' if they already haven't."
Here are some photos of the protests posted on Twitter:

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голос америки

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Social Media Documenting, Not Driving, Hong Kong Protests

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A torrent of tweets and Facebook posts is pouring out of Hong Kong documenting the "Umbrella revolution," but social media does not appear to be driving the protesters as it did the Arab Spring, also called the Facebook revolution.

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Updated May 15, 2014 14:13:49

South Korea has recognised three crew members who died saving others in last month's Sewol ferry disaster as national "martyrs".

All three were part-time crew members, including an engaged couple - Kim Ki-Woong and Jung Hyun-Seon, both 28 - who could have escaped the sinking vessel but stayed to help trapped passengers.

Park Ji-young, 21, the youngest crew member, became a public hero after it emerged that she had given her lifejacket to a passenger as she sought to guide people to safety.

Their heroic actions stood in stark contrast to the captain and most of the crew who were among the first to abandon ship and have been widely vilified for leaving trapped passengers to die.

All 15 surviving crew members, including the captain, have been arrested.

Being designated martyrs entitles them to burial at a national cemetery, and their families will be eligible for financial compensation, medical assistance and other incentives.

The 6,825-tonne ferry Sewol capsized and sank off the southern coast on April 16.

The confirmed death toll from the disaster stood at 275 on Monday, with 29 still unaccounted for as dangerous conditions suspended recovery operations for a third straight day.

Divers have been unable to access the submerged vessel since Saturday morning, with strong tides and heavy swells pushing conditions beyond the safety limit.

Race to recover bodies from ferry

There is intense pressure on the recovery teams to wrap up the grim task of pulling every body from the ferry as soon as possible.

The families of those still missing oppose raising the vessel until every body has been retrieved.

But the search, in near-zero visibility, is becoming increasingly dangerous, with some partition walls on the ship warping and at risk of collapse.

"We will put the priority on the safety of divers when they search through dangerous areas," coastguard spokesman Ko Myung-Suk told a daily briefing.

The Sewol was carrying 476 people when it sank after listing sharply to one side and then rolling over.

Of those on board, 325 were children from a high school on an organised trip to the southern resort island of Jeju.

Initial investigations suggest the ferry was carrying up to three times its safe cargo capacity.

The Sewol's regular captain, who was off duty on the day of the accident, has told prosecutors that the ferry operator Chonghaejin Marine Co "brushed aside" repeated warnings that the 20-year-old ship had stability issues following a renovation in 2012.

Five Chonghaejin officials, including the company's head, have been arrested on various charges including manslaughter, negligence and breaches of safety regulations.
AFP/ABC
Topics: maritime, accidents, law-crime-and-justice, korea-republic-of, asia

First posted May 13, 2014 00:44:39

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Three crew members of S Korea ferry named as martyrs

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Updated May 15, 2014 14:13:49 South Korea has recognised three crew members who died saving others in last month's Sewol ferry disaster as national "martyrs". All three were part-time crew members, including an engaged couple - Kim Ki-Woong and Jung Hyun-Seon, both 28 - who could have escaped the sinking vessel but stayed to help trapped passengers.

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This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

In-Text Citations: Author/Authors
Summary:
APA (American Psychological Association) style is most commonly used to cite sources within the social sciences. This resource, revised according to the 6 th edition, second printing of the APA manual, offers examples for the general format of APA research papers, in-text citations, endnotes/footnotes, and the reference page. For more information, please consult the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, (6 th ed., 2 nd printing).

APA style has a series of important rules on using author names as part of the author-date system. There are additional rules for citing indirect sources, electronic sources, and sources without page numbers.

Citing an Author or Authors

A Work by Two Authors: Name both authors in the signal phrase or in parentheses each time you cite the work. Use the word "and" between the authors' names within the text and use the ampersand in parentheses.

Research by Wegener and Petty (1994) supports...

A Work by Three to Five Authors: List all the authors in the signal phrase or in parentheses the first time you cite the source. Use the word "and" between the authors' names within the text and use the ampersand in parentheses.

(Kernis, Cornell, Sun, Berry, & Harlow, 1993)

In subsequent citations, only use the first author's last name followed by "et al." in the signal phrase or in parentheses.

In et al., et should not be followed by a period.

Six or More Authors: Use the first author's name followed by et al. in the signal phrase or in parentheses.

Harris et al. (2001) argued...

Unknown Author: If the work does not have an author, cite the source by its title in the signal phrase or use the first word or two in the parentheses. Titles of books and reports are italicized; titles of articles, chapters, and web pages are in quotation marks.

A similar study was done of students learning to format research papers ("Using APA," 2001).

Note: In the rare case the "Anonymous" is used for the author, treat it as the author's name (Anonymous, 2001). In the reference list, use the name Anonymous as the author.

Organization as an Author: If the author is an organization or a government agency, mention the organization in the signal phrase or in the parenthetical citation the first time you cite the source.

According to the American Psychological Association (2000),...

If the organization has a well-known abbreviation, include the abbreviation in brackets the first time the source is cited and then use only the abbreviation in later citations.

First citation: (Mothers Against Drunk Driving [MADD], 2000)

Second citation: (MADD, 2000)

Two or More Works in the Same Parentheses: When your parenthetical citation includes two or more works, order them the same way they appear in the reference list (viz., alphabetically), separated by a semi-colon.

(Berndt, 2002; Harlow, 1983)

Authors With the Same Last Name: To prevent confusion, use first initials with the last names.

(E. Johnson, 2001; L. Johnson, 1998)

Two or More Works by the Same Author in the Same Year: If you have two sources by the same author in the same year, use lower-case letters (a, b, c) with the year to order the entries in the reference list. Use the lower-case letters with the year in the in-text citation.

Research by Berndt (1981a) illustrated that...

Introductions, Prefaces, Forewords, and Afterwords: When citing an Introduction, Preface, Foreword, or Afterword in-text, cite the appropriate author and year as usual.

Personal Communication: For interviews, letters, e-mails, and other person-to-person communication, cite the communicator's name, the fact that it was personal communication, and the date of the communication. Do not include personal communication in the reference list.

(E. Robbins, personal communication, January 4, 2001).

A. P. Smith also claimed that many of her students had difficulties with APA style (personal communication, November 3, 2002).

Citing Indirect Sources

If you use a source that was cited in another source, name the original source in your signal phrase. List the secondary source in your reference list and include the secondary source in the parentheses.

Johnson argued that...(as cited in Smith, 2003, p. 102).

Note: When citing material in parentheses, set off the citation with a comma, as above. Also, try to locate the original material and cite the original source.

Electronic Sources

If possible, cite an electronic document the same as any other document by using the author-date style.

Kenneth (2000) explained...

Unknown Author and Unknown Date: If no author or date is given, use the title in your signal phrase or the first word or two of the title in the parentheses and use the abbreviation "n.d." (for "no date").

Another study of students and research decisions discovered that students succeeded with tutoring ("Tutoring and APA," n.d.).

Sources Without Page Numbers

When an electronic source lacks page numbers, you should try to include information that will help readers find the passage being cited. When an electronic document has numbered paragraphs, use the abbreviation "para." followed by the paragraph number (Hall, 2001, para. 5). If the paragraphs are not numbered and the document includes headings, provide the appropriate heading and specify the paragraph under that heading. Note that in some electronic sources, like webpages, people can use the "find" function in their browser to locate any passages you cite.

According to Smith (1997), ... (Mind Over Matter section, para. 6).

Note: Never use the page numbers of webpages you print out; different computers print webpages with different pagination.

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In-Text Citations: Author/Authors // Purdue Writing Lab

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This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice. Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission.

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youtube video - apa format: title page, running head, and section

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youtube video - apa format: title page, running head, and section

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Gmail is email that’s intuitive, efficient, and useful. 15 GB of storage, less spam, and mobile access.

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Pew Research Center's Journalism Project

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Conversations with others remain an integral part of how we learn about government and politics. As one respondent stated, "Word of mouth is a large part of how political views are formed." Said another, "Talking with other residents in our area is a useful way to keep up with local politics."

In general, most adults talk about politics with people of varying political views, some of which are in line with their own views and others which run counter. But, as these data reveal, discussing politics with people of varying viewpoints becomes less frequent among those with strong ideological ties.

To begin with, those with stronger ideological ties are more drawn to political discussions in the first place. The vast majority (81%) of those with consistently conservative political values enjoy talking about politics, as do 69% of those with consistently liberal political values. That compares with just 44% of those with more mixed political views.

This greater enjoyment translates to more frequent discussions. Roughly seven-in-ten consistent conservatives (68%) and six-in-ten consistent liberals (57%) talk about politics at least a few times a week - about twice that of those with mixed views (31%).

Shared Political Views More Common Along the More Ideological

Respondents overall are fairly split between mostly having friends who share their views about government and politics (36%) and having a mix of friends - some who share their political views and some who do not (41%). Additionally, nearly a quarter (23%), say they don't know their friends' political views.

"I actually get a lot of information from my friends who read other sources of info than I do."

Just a quarter of respondents with mixed ideological views say that most of their close friends share their views about government and politics. More (44%) say they have many friends who do not share their views. Three-in-ten (30%) say they don't really know what most of their close friends think about government and politics.

Those whose political views are solidly on the left or right - and especially those on the right - have a much greater tendency than others to have politically like-minded friends. Two-thirds (66%) of consistent conservatives say most of their friends share their political views, more than twice the number who say only some of their friends do (29%). A mere 5% don't know the political views of their close friends.

Consistent liberals are somewhat less likely than consistent conservatives to have politically like-minded friends. About half (52%) say most of their friends share their views - though that is still twice that of those in the middle. And 12% are not aware of their close friends' political views.

Similar to what the data reveal about people's circle of friends on Facebook, consistent liberals might have close friends that span a wider mix of political views than consistent conservatives, but they are the most likely to stop talking to or being friends with someone because of politics.

Though only about one-in-ten respondents (12%) say they have stopped talking to or being friends with someone because of politics, about a quarter (24%) of consistent liberals have done this. This compares with 16% of consistent conservatives and 10% or less among those who are less ideologically consistent.

When It Comes to Talking Points, Conservatives More Likely to Stick Together

To gain a more granular understanding about politics in people's everyday lives, panelists who at least occasionally talk about politics were asked to list up to three people with whom they most frequently discuss the topic.

Respondents were then asked what they thought each person's party affiliation and political ideology was, as well as whether they agree with that person when they talk about politics. ( For details on how the question was asked, see survey topline.)

People likely talk about politics to more than the three individuals they were asked about here. Indeed, 70% of respondents who name at least one person say there are others they talk to as well. Nevertheless, a look at the three people that panelists name again shows the greater tendency among those with strong ideological alignments to affiliate with like-minded people. And again, these data suggest that this tendency is stronger among those with conservative political views.

Half (50%) of consistent conservatives, along with 28% of those with mostly conservative political values only name individuals they describe as also conservative. Consistent liberals are on par with those who hold mostly conservative views. About three-in-ten (31%) consistent liberals name only fellow liberals. That was the case for just one-in-ten (9%) of those with mostly liberal views.

It is worth noting, though, that for about half of consistent conservatives and the clear majority of consistent liberals, the three people they most often talk to about politics include people who do not share their ideological views. Respondents were also asked about the political party affiliation of each of their discussion partners. On this measure, 39% of consistent liberals only name Democrats, while 43% of consistent conservatives only name Republicans. The slightly different pattern in the discussion partners by perceived ideology and perceived partisanship may, to some extent, reflect that more of the public self-identifies as conservative, rather than liberal, but at the same time more of the public identifies with the Democratic Party rather than the Republican Party.

Consistent Conservatives More Likely than Others to Agree With the People They Most Often Talk to About Politics

In political conversations, most people encounter some disagreement; even with those they consider their closest discussion mates. But that experience is less common for those at either end of the ideological spectrum.

Overall, about two-thirds of panelists who talk about politics (69%) name at least one discussion partner with whom they disagree with at least some of the time, while 31% only name individuals with whom they agree with all or most of the time. Among those with mixed and mostly liberal political views, there is even more exposure to differing views: nearly eight-in-ten (79%) disagree at least sometimes with at least one of their closest discussion partners, and just two-in-ten (21%) only name people with whom they agree.

At the political edges, though, and particularly on the right, there is less disagreement and greater reinforcement of one's political views. About half, 53%, of consistent conservatives who talk about politics agree all or most of the time with all of their top discussion partners - more than double that of those with mixed political views. The same is true of 41% of consistent liberals.

Consistent Liberals, Conservatives More Likely to Take the Lead When It Comes to Talking Politics

Along with discussing politics to a greater degree, the more ideologically consistent also tend guide political discussions. And here, liberals and conservatives take the lead at roughly the same rate.

The Pew Research Center asked panelists who talk about politics at least a few times a month whether they tend to lead or listen to these conversations, and if people tend to turn to them for information about politics.

Overall, those who discuss politics at least a few times a month are fairly evenly split on both measures. But majorities of both consistent conservatives and consistent liberals describe themselves as leaders (61% and 57%, respectively) and as having others turn to them for information about politics (69% and 64%, respectively).

Those who frequently talk about politics, lead political conversations and have others come to them for political information can be said to be at the forefront of political discourse. In other words, they are political discussion influentials.

Again, the data reveal the heavier role played by those with stronger ideological leanings. Just a small minority (19%) of respondents overall fall into this category, but this number rises to nearly four-in-ten (39%) consistent conservatives and about three-in-ten (29%) consistent liberals. Again, mostly conservatives, mostly liberals and the mixed lag behind.

One respondent with mixed ideological views sums up this trend:
"I get information from talking to my brother... He is big on following the news. I'm not and don't watch the news unless I am flipping through the channels and see something that catches my attention."

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Section 3: Talking Politics: Leaders vs. Listeners and the Views People Hear

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Conversations with others remain an integral part of how we learn about government and politics. As one respondent stated, "Word of mouth is a large part of how political views are formed." Said another, "Talking with other residents in our area is a useful way to keep up with local politics."

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Pew Research Center's Journalism Project

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The advent of social media has opened up new ways for people with similar interests to find, share and talk about news - including news about politics - with friends and colleagues.

Facebook is now a widely-used source for news about government and politics. Nearly half (48%) of the panelists say they accessed news about politics and government on Facebook in the past week, about as many as got news about these topics from local TV (49%). (Note that this survey is representative of the 89% of Americans who have access to the internet. Based on the full population, somewhat fewer-39%-get news from Facebook in a typical week.)

As a platform that links to content from many different sources, Facebook draws about twice as many political news consumers among web users as the aggregation sites Yahoo News (24% in the past week) or Google News (22%). And Facebook far surpasses other social media sites, such as YouTube and Twitter, as a source for news about politics and government. Just 14% say they got political news in the past week from YouTube, 9% from Twitter, 6% from Google Plus and 3% from LinkedIn.

In part, this stems from Facebook's broad reach; it is by far the largest social media platform. Fully 77% of web panelists use Facebook. That compares with 63% who use YouTube and much smaller shares who use Twitter (21%), Google Plus (24%) or LinkedIn (25%).

But even holding its more widespread use constant, a greater portion of Facebook's audience gets political news there than is true for other social networks - 62%. That compares with 40% of all Twitter users, about a quarter of those on YouTube (22%) or Google Plus (25%) and just 12% of LinkedIn users .

As Pew Research found in a 2013 study of the role of news on Facebook, not all of these users are specifically seeking out political news when they log on to the site, but they nonetheless come across it in the mix of posts shared by those in their feed.

One unique feature of social media is how the political news you see is impacted by your choice of friends and your past behavior on the site. Each individual sees a different mix of content, depending on who is in his or her feed, as well as the kinds of posts he or she has responded to in the past. So when it comes to politics, a common question to ask is the degree to which people create circles of friends that reflect their own ideological views. The evidence suggests that while nearly all users get a mix of views, those with stronger ideological tendencies are more likely to surround themselves with like-minded opinions.

Overall, consistent conservatives are somewhat less likely than consistent liberals to get government and political news on Facebook or Twitter, primarily because they are somewhat less likely to use the sites in the first place. About half (49%) of consistent liberals (and a similar share of those with mixed ideological views) say they got news about government and politics in the past week from Facebook, compared with 40% of consistent conservatives. And while 13% of consistent liberals say they got political news on Twitter in the past week, just 5% of consistent conservatives (and 8% of groups in between) say the same.

The data also find that those who use social networking sites for news about government and politics are also getting this news through other channels at the same time. Respondents who got political news on at least one social networking site in the past week got such news from an average of 4.8 other news sources as well ( out of the list of 37 asked about), similar to their peers who don't learn about politics through social networks. (For further evidence of this phenomenon, see 2013 Facebook and News report.)

Looking Deeper at Facebook Habits by Ideology

At the same time that consistent conservatives are less likely to use Facebook than other groups, those who do use it are highly engaged with political news. Two-thirds of consistent conservatives who see political posts on Facebook pay "a lot" of (19%) or "some" attention (47%) to those posts. Similarly, six-in-ten consistent liberals who see political posts on Facebook pay "a lot" of (14%) or "some" (46%) attention.

But as with interest in political news from traditional media sources, there is a "U-shaped" pattern in how ideological groups engage with political news on Facebook. Smaller shares of those who are less ideologically consistent pay attention to Facebook posts about government and politics than those with stronger ideological ties. These middle groups are about half as likely to pay a lot of attention to political posts.

Overall, those who see posts about politics on Facebook are exposed to a variety of views. Only about a quarter of those who pay attention to these posts say the posts they see are nearly always (2%) or mostly (21%) in line with their own political views. A 62% majority of these users see political content in line with their views "some of the time," while just 13% say they see such posts "not too often."

But consistent conservatives and, to a lesser extent, consistent liberals are much more likely to be exposed to views similar to their own. Among those who pay attention to posts about politics, nearly half of consistent conservatives (47%) say the opinions they see are mostly or always in line with their own views; among consistent liberals, about one-in-three (32%) say the same.

Among mostly conservative Facebook users who pay attention to political posts, 28% say the posts they see are always or mostly in line with their own political views. Those with mostly liberal views (13%) and mixed ideological views (17%) are the least likely to see like-minded posts about politics.

And how do different groups respond to political views with which they disagree? About one-in-four (26%) Facebook users have hidden, blocked, defriended or stopped following someone on a social networking site based on disagreements over political posts. While consistent conservatives are the most likely to see Facebook posts in line with their political views, consistent liberals are the most likely to block others on social networking sites because they disagree with their content.

More than four-in-ten consistent liberals who use Facebook (44%) say they have blocked someone on a social networking site because of a political post. Consistent conservatives are less likely to have done this (31%), as are those with more mixed ideological views (about two-in-ten).

Beyond personal friends and colleagues, what kinds of groups and organizations do these news consumers on Facebook follow? Among those who pay at least some attention to politics on Facebook, about three-in-ten (29%) "like" or otherwise follow political parties, candidates or elected officials. A somewhat greater share of users follows news organizations, reporters or commentators (36%), and about four-in-ten (41%) follow issue-based groups on Facebook.

Of those paying attention to political posts, the two most ideologically consistent groups are about twice as likely as those with mixed views to follow political parties, candidates or elected officials. About half of consistent conservatives (49%) and 42% of consistent liberals "like" or follow parties, candidates or officials, compared with three-in-ten or fewer of those with more mixed ideologies.

Consistent liberals on Facebook are the ideological group most likely to follow issue-based organizations: 60% of those who pay some attention to political posts follow such a group, compared with 46% of consistent conservatives.

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Section 2: Social Media, Political News and Ideology

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The advent of social media has opened up new ways for people with similar interests to find, share and talk about news - including news about politics - with friends and colleagues. Facebook is now a widely-used source for news about government and politics.

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Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech

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Online and offline political engagement

This study examines online and offline political engagement and pays special attention to the role of social networking sites in people's political activities. There are several major findings:

Class differences, especially those related to educational attainment, are prominent in political engagement of all kinds, whether that activity takes place offline, online, or within the specific context of social networking sites (SNS), though the trend is somewhat more moderate in SNS.

There has been major growth in political activity on SNS between 2008 and this survey in 2012. The number of social networking site users has grown from 33% of the online population in 2008 to 69% of the online population in 2012. And there have been major jumps in the proportion of SNS users who post political news, who friend or follow candidates, and who joined an SNS group organized around political or social issues. In addition, notable shares of SNS users say their activity on the sites has prompted them to learn more about social or political issues and to take action around those issues.

For most politically active SNS users, social networking sites are not a separate realm of political activity. They are frequently active in other aspects of civic life.

Even as online platforms have grown more prominent in political affairs, Americans' day-to-day political conversations mostly occur offline.

The four ways we measured civic engagement

First, 48% of adults directly take part in a civic group or activity.

In this survey, the Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project measured several broad categories of civic activity that Americans might engage in. The first finding is that half (48%) of American adults directly took part in a civic group or activity in the 12 months preceding our August 2012 survey. This includes anyone who did one or more of the following six activities:

35% of American adults have recently worked with fellow citizens to solve a problem in their community

22% have attended a political meeting on local, town, or school affairs

13% have been an active member of a group that tries to influence the public or government

10% have attended a political rally or speech

7% have worked or volunteered for a political party or candidate

6% have attended an organized protest

Second, 39% of adults recently contacted a government official or spoke out in a public forum via offline methods. Third, 34% did those things via online methods.

In the second category of public engagement, we found that 39% of American adults have recently contacted a government official or spoken out in a public forum about an issue that is important to them via offline means. In the third category, we found that 34% have done so via online methods. This includes anyone who did one or more of the following activities that might take place in either online or offline spaces:

22% of American adults have recently signed a paper petition; 17% have signed a petition online.

21% of American adults have recently contacted a government official about an issue that is important to them in person, by phone, or by letter; 18% have done so online, by email, or by text message.

7% of American adults have recently called into a live radio or TV show to express an opinion about a political or social issue; 18% have commented on an online news story or blog post about this type of issue.

3% of American adults have sent a letter to the editor to a newspaper or magazine by regular mail; 4% have done so online, by email, or by text message.

Fourth, 39% of adults do political or civic activities on social networking sites.

In the fourth category, 39% of American adults took part in some sort of political activity in the context of a social networking site such as Facebook or Twitter in the 12 months preceding our survey. This includes anyone who did one or more of the following eight activities listed in the table below:

In total, nearly three-quarters (72%) of all American adults did at least one of the activities that we measured in those four broad categories of civic and political engagement.

Activities

Traditional political activities are most common among the well-educated and financially well-off, regardless of whether they take place online or offline. On social networking sites, income-related differences are more modest - but civic engagement in these spaces is still most prevalent among those with higher educational levels.

Those who live in higher income households and those with higher levels of education (specifically, those who have attended or graduated from college) are consistently more likely than those with lower income or education levels to take part in many of the online and offline civic behaviors we measured in this study. This gap is especially pronounced for the following specific activities:

Working with fellow citizens to solve a problem in one's community

Attending a political meeting on local, town, or school affairs

Being an active member of a group that tries to influence public policy or government

Attending a political rally or speech

Working or volunteering for a political party or candidate

Contacting a government official about an issue that is important to you (both online and offline)

Signing a petition (both digitally and on paper)

Commenting on a news story or blog post online

On the other hand, when it comes to the 60% of American adults who use social networking sites such as Facebook or Twitter, political participation is more balanced between lower and higher income Americans. Among social networking site users, political participation is identical for those who live in the lowest earning households (annual household income of less than $10,000) and highest earning households (annual household income of $150,000 or more).

Higher income Americans are more likely to use social networking sites in the first place, so income-related differences are evident when the base measurement applies to all adults - not just SNS users. But even on an "all adults" basis, the gap in political participation between the lowest and highest income groups is generally smaller on social networking sites than it is for other types of political engagement.

At the same time, even as differences in social networking engagement are less pronounced with respect to income, the college-educated are significantly more likely than those with a high school education to take part in nearly every SNS-related behavior we measured in our survey. And in contrast to income (where SNS users in the lowest and highest categories were equally likely to use these sites for political reasons) these educational differences persist even when we account for different levels of adoption between those with lower and higher education levels.

In other words, even as the impact of income on political participation is more modest in the context of social networking sites, socio-economic distinctions related to education still play a prominent role in these spaces.

More broadly, those at the lower end of the socio-economic spectrum are generally less involved with the day-to-day outreach, chatter, and discussion around political issues - regardless of whether those discussions take place in physical or digital spaces. Compared with the well-educated and financially well-off, they are much less likely to receive political communications through a variety of channels, or to have conversations about political or social issues with others in either online or offline venues. Ultimately, political issues, political activity, and political discussion are less present in the lives of these Americans than they are for those at the upper end of the socio-economic scale.

Younger adults are just as likely as older adults to be engaged in many political activities, and are much more likely to be politically active on social networking sites.

Most types of political engagement are equally commonplace among Americans of different generations. There are only modest age-related differences when it comes to getting involved in political groups or in-person activities, speaking out publicly in online spaces, or speaking out publicly in offline spaces.

Social networking sites (SNS) stand in contrast to these other venues. Political engagement on social networking sites is especially commonplace among the youngest Americans, as two-thirds (67%) of all 18-24 year olds (and nearly three quarters of those young adults who use social networking sites) engaged in some sort of social network-related political activity in the 12 months preceding our survey. Older adults tend to be fairly politically active on social networking sites to the extent that they use them, but are relatively unlikely to use these sites in the first place. So, although nearly six in ten SNS-using seniors are politically active on these sites, that works out to just 13% of all Americans in the 65+ age group.

Indeed, the youngest American adults are more likely to engage in political behaviors on social networking sites than in any other venue. And the typical (median) 18-29 year old took part in three of the eight SNS-oriented political behaviors measured in this survey. The general youth of the "political SNS user" group also helps to explain the balance between high- and low-income users when it comes to political activity in these spaces, since many of these younger adults are only beginning their careers and have not fully maximized their earning potential.
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There has been major growth in political activity on social networking sites since 2008, and discussions on social networking sites can lead to further engagement with political issues.

The structure of political activity on social networking sites has grown in importance in recent years. The number of social networking site users has grown from 33% of the online population in 2008 to 69% of the online population in 2012. And as the overall SNS user population has grown, more of these users are engaging in one way or another with political or social issues on these sites, compared with 2008 when we asked a similar set of questions about this subject. Here are some of the key areas of growth:

In 2008, 11% of social networking site users said that they used these sites to post political news for others to read - at the time that worked out to just 3% of all adults. In 2012, 28% of SNS users (representing 17% of all adults) said they posted links to political stories or articles and 33% (representing 19% of all adults) said they posted other types of political content on these sites.

In 2008, 12% of social networking site users (representing 3% of all adults) said they had friended a political candidate on these sites. In 2012, 20% of users (representing 12% of all adults) said they have friended or followed a candidate or similar political figure.

In 2008, 13% of users (representing 3% of all adults) said they had started or joined a group on a social networking site organized around political or social issues. By 2012, the proportion of social networking site users who do this had risen to 21% (12% of all adults).

We also asked directly about the impact of social networking site discussions on users' political behaviors and found that:

43% of social networking site users say they have decided to learn more about a political or social issue because of something they read about on a social networking site.

18% of social networking site users say they have decided to take action involving a political or social issue because of something they read on those sites.

In each instance, users were evenly split between those who found out about the issue in question from someone they know personally, and those who found out about it from someone they don't know personally, such as an organization or public figure. Younger SNS users are especially likely to engage in deeper investigations of issues based on discussions within those sites, as are those with a college degree.

The world of politics on social networking sites is - for most users - not a separate domain of political activity. "Political social networking site users" are frequently (but not universally) active in other aspects of civic life.

Many discussions about the impact of the internet on political and civic life assume that the people who take part in political activities on social networking sites are separate and distinct from those who take part in political activities outside social networking sites. In fact, the typical politically active American is active in a range of venues - online, offline, and in social networking spaces - and those who get involved politically on social networking sites tend to take part in a wide range of behaviors that occur outside the boundaries of sites like Facebook or Twitter.

As noted above, 39% of Americans performed some sort of political activity on a social networking site in the 12 months preceding our survey. We refer to them throughout this report as "political social networking site (SNS) users," and these users tend to be active in many other areas of political or civic life:

63% of political SNS users have recently gotten involved in a political activity or group, such as attending a political meeting or working with fellow citizens to solve a problem in their community. The national average is 48%.

60% have expressed their opinion about a political or social issue via online channels - for example, by sending an email to a government official, or signing an online petition. The national average is 34%.

53% have expressed their opinion about a political or social issue via offline channels, for example, by sending a letter to a government official, or signing a paper petition. The national average is 39%.

20% have made a political contribution of some kind. This is statistically similar to the 16% rate within the population as a whole.

Adding these four categories together, some 83% of political SNS users also get involved in political or social issues in one way or another outside the bounds of social networking sites themselves.

Of course, this also means that 17% of political SNS users - representing 8% of the total adult population - engage in political activity on social networking sites but in no other online or offline venues. Demographically, this "politically active on social networking sites but not elsewhere" group tends to be younger, less affluent, and less well-educated than the larger group that participates politically on social networking spaces and also other venues. They also have less overall exposure to political communications and outreach, and are less likely to take part in interpersonal political "chatter." In other words, even as they interact with political issues on social networking sites, they tend to get involved with those issues with only modest intensity.

Even as online platforms have grown more prominent in recent years, Americans' day-to-day political conversations - and political contributions -are still more likely to take place offline.

Despite the increased prominence of online platforms when it comes to Americans' political activity, much of the day-to-day conversation around these issues takes place in traditional (offline) channels. On an "every day" level, Americans are three times as likely to discuss politics or public affairs with others through offline channels (in person, by phone call, or by letter) as they are through online channels. Even the most tech-savvy users - such as young adults, college graduates, or those with high incomes-discuss politics with greater frequency offline than online.

Similarly, the bulk of political campaign contributions happen offline, even as online donations have grown more prominent in recent years. Some 23% of political donors made only online contributions in 2012, yet the substantial majority of political donors (60%) make contributions only via offline methods (that is, in person, over the telephone, or via regular mail).

Mobilization and Outreach: Email and social network users are frequently contacted and asked to take part in civic activities within those online spaces.

Although online tools play a secondary role in Americans' day-to-day political discussions with others, they have more prominence when it comes to outreach by groups or organizations looking to encourage political action (such as donating money, contacting a public official, or working for a candidate or cause). Email is particularly notable in this regard: 21% of email users regularly get asked on email to take some action around a political or social issue - that works out to 18% of all Americans who regularly receive mobilization messages via email. Social network users also tend to receive relatively frequent calls to action within the context of these sites, as 13% of SNS users (representing 8% of all adults) regularly receive outreach messages on these sites.

Taking all of these communications modes together, some 65% of Americans are contacted at least occasionally by groups or individuals asking them to take some sort of civic or political action, with 33% saying they are contacted for this reason on a regular basis (once a week or more frequently). As with many of the civic behaviors discussed here, these contacts are reported more frequently by those with relatively high income and education levels, and those who receive frequent political communications tend to be highly active in various online and offline venues.

There are also some partisan differences among the different types of outreach. Conservatives and Republicans are more likely than liberals and Democrats to receive political "calls to action" in the mail, while liberals and Democrats are more likely than conservatives and Republicans to receive these messages on social networking sites.

Those who have been affected by the recent economic downturn are actively involved with political and social issues across a range of platforms.

Overall, some 56% of the population has experienced one or more of the following impacts in the preceding year as a result of the recent economic slowdown:

46% have cut back on the amount or quality of food they purchase

38% have put off medical or dental treatment

25% have delayed making a rent or house payment

Members of this "economically affected" group tend to have relatively low incomes compared with those who have not experienced these impacts, but are also relatively young and well-educated as a group. Moreover, the economically affected are fairly active when it comes to expressing themselves about the issues of the day in various online and offline venues. Compared with the 44% of Americans who have not experienced any of these impacts:

The "economically affected" are no less likely to own a cell phone, to use the internet, or to use social networking sites.

They are equally likely to directly take part in an in-person political group or activity. Indeed, they are slightly more likely to have recently attended an organized protest or a local political meeting.

They are equally likely to receive political outreach messages across a range of platforms.

They are equally likely to publicly speak out about issues that are important to them in online forums, and a bit more likely (by a 41%-36% margin) to do so in offline forums.

They are equally likely to take part in political actions or discussions on social networking sites, and are in fact a bit more likely (by a 35%-27% margin) to encourage others to take action about issues that are important to them on these spaces.

Campaign donations are one of the few areas where the "affected" stand out from the rest of the population. Some 13% have made a campaign contribution in the year preceding our survey (compared with 20% of those who have not experienced any of these impacts).

About this survey

This report is based on the findings of a survey on Americans' use of the Internet. The results in this report are based on data from telephone interviews conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International from July 16 to August 7, 2012, among a sample of 2,253 adults, age 18 and older. Telephone interviews were conducted in English and Spanish by landline (1,353) and cell phone (900, including 469 without a landline phone). For results based on the total sample, one can say with 95% confidence that the error attributable to sampling is plus or minus 2.3 percentage points. For results based Internet users (n=1,873), the margin of sampling error is plus or minus 2.5 percentage points.

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Sidney Verba, Kay Lehman Schlozman, and Henry Brady for generously contributing their time and expertise to the development of surveys of civic engagement in both 2008 and 2012.

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This study examines online and offline political engagement and pays special attention to the role of social networking sites in people's political activities. There are several major findings: Class differences, especially those related to educational attainment, are prominent in political engagement of all kinds, whether that activity takes place offline, online, or within the specific context of social networking sites (SNS), though the trend is somewhat more moderate in SNS.

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As the Internet plays a larger role in governance, campaigns and activism, the debate continues about how social and digital media are changing politics. Ongoing research is addressing topics such as whether or not the Internet is leading to increased political polarization - the tendency of like-minded individuals to cluster even closer together in their habits and viewpoints.

Although there is increasing skepticism about the real meaning of large-scale social media behavior in terms of its tangible impact for campaigns, some critics point out that journalists are not sufficiently keeping up with new, effective campaign tactics. Of course, the Obama-Romney race offers the latest case study in how politicians are deploying digital strategy and the consequences. Despite media narratives suggesting digital strategy in the 2012 reelection campaign of Pres. Obama proved decisive, some political scientists are already revising and challenging this interpretation.

Below are studies that bring a scholarly, data-driven perspective to questions within this area of inquiry. Special credit to George Washington University's Henry Farrell, whose article in the Annual Review of Political Science, "The Consequences of the Internet for Politics," usefully highlights some of the papers listed.

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"Birds of a Feather Tweet Together: Integrating Network and Content Analyses to Examine Cross-Ideology Exposure on Twitter"
Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 2013

Findings: The data show that "on Twitter, political talk is highly partisan, where users' clusters are characterized by homogeneous views and are linked to information sources...." These dynamics likely "reinforce in-group and out-group affiliations, as literally, users form separate political groups on Twitter." The more the tweets in a cluster reflected a political perspective, the more ideologically one-sided its content tended to be. "Politically active voices, particularly younger voters, who use the Internet to express their opinions are moving away from neutral news sites in favor of those that match their own political views."

"A 61-Million-Person Experiment in Social Influence and Political Mobilization"
Nature, 2012

Findings: The data "suggest that the Facebook social message increased turnout directly by about 60,000 voters and indirectly through social contagion by another 280,000 voters, for a total of 340,000 additional votes." Further, "To put these results in context, it is important to note that turnout has been steadily increasing in recent U.S. midterm elections, from 36.3% of the voting-age population in 2002 to 37.2% in 2006, and to 37.8% in 2010." The 340,000 additional votes attributed to Facebook messages represents "0.14% of the voting age population of about 236 million in 2010.... It is possible that more of the 0.60% growth in turnout between 2006 and 2010 might have been caused by a single message on Facebook."

"Social Media and Political Engagement"
Pew Internet & American Life Project, October 2012

Abstract: "The use of social media is becoming a feature of political and civic engagement for many Americans. Some 60% of American adults use either social networking sites like Facebook or Twitter, and a new survey by the Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project finds that 66% of those social media users-or 39% of all American adults-have done at least one of eight civic or political activities with social media. 66% of social media users have employed the platforms to post their thoughts about civic and political issues, react to others' postings, press friends to act on issues and vote, follow candidates, 'like' and link to others' content, and belong to groups formed on social networking sites."

Abstract: "Social fragmentation and the decline of group loyalties have given rise to an era of personalized politics in which individually expressive personal action frames displace collective action frames in many protest causes. This trend can be spotted in the rise of large-scale, rapidly forming political participation aimed at a variety of targets, ranging from parties and candidates, to corporations, brands, and transnational organizations. The group-based 'identity politics' of the 'new social movements' that arose after the 1960s still exist, but the recent period has seen more diverse mobilizations in which individuals are mobilized around personal lifestyle values to engage with multiple causes such as economic justice (fair trade, inequality, and development policies), environmental protection, and worker and human rights."

"Social Networking Sites and Politics"
Pew Research Center, March 2012

Findings: "Postings on social networking sites reveal surprises for many users when it comes to the political views of their friends. Nearly four in ten users discovered through postings by friends that their political beliefs were different than they thought. A small percentage of users blocked, unfriended or [hid] someone on the site because their postings were too frequent or they disagreed with them. Three-quarters of social networking site users say their friends post at least some content related to politics on the sites from time to time. They amount to 40% of the entire adult population."

Findings: "We examine the relationship between the numbers of supporting and challenging items in a collection of political opinion items and readers' satisfaction, and then evaluate whether simple presentation techniques such as highlighting agreeable items or showing them first can increase satisfaction when fewer agreeable items are present. We find individual differences: Some people are diversity-seeking while others are challenge-averse. For challenge-averse readers, highlighting appears to make satisfaction with sets of mostly agreeable items more extreme, but does not increase satisfaction overall, and sorting agreeable content first appears to decrease satisfaction rather than increasing it."

"Political polarization on Twitter"
Proceedings of the Fifth International Conference on Weblogs and Social Media, 2011

Findings: "We examine two networks of political communication on Twitter, comprised of more than 250,000 tweets from the six weeks leading up to the 2010 U.S. congressional midterm elections. Using a combination of network clustering algorithms and manually annotated data we demonstrate that the network of political retweets exhibits a highly segregated partisan structure, with extremely limited connectivity between left- and right-leaning users. Surprisingly, this is not the case for the user-to-user mention network, which is dominated by a single politically heterogeneous cluster of users in which ideologically opposed individuals interact at a much higher rate compared to the network of retweets."

Findings: "In this study, we seek to correct this oversight by content analyzing five online news sources - including wire services, cable news, and political blog sites - in order to compare their news judgments in the months prior to, and immediately following, the 2006 midterm election. We collected all stories from Reuters' and AP's "top political news" sections. We then investigated whether a given story was also chosen to appear on each wire's top news page (indicating greater perceived newsworthiness than those that were not chosen) and compared the wires' editorial choices to those of more partisan blogs (from the left: DailyKos.com; from the right: FreeRepublic.com) and cable outlets (FoxNews.com). We find evidence of greater partisan filtering for the latter three Web sources, and relatively greater reliance on traditional newsworthiness criteria for the news wires."

Findings: "Focusing on online news consumption, offline news consumption, and face-to-face social interactions, we define ideological segregation in each domain using standard indices from the literature on racial segregation. We find that ideological segregation of online news consumption is low in absolute terms, higher than the segregation of most offline news consumption and significantly lower than the segregation of face-to-face interactions with neighbors, co-workers or family members. We find no evidence that the Internet is becoming more segregated over time."

Findings: "We find that blog readers gravitate toward blogs that accord with their political beliefs. Few read blogs on both the left and right of the ideological spectrum. Furthermore, those who read leftwing blogs and those who read rightwing blogs are ideologically far apart. Blog readers are more polarized than either non-blog-readers or consumers of various television news programs, and roughly as polarized as U.S. Senators. Blog readers also participate more in politics than non-blog readers. Readers of blogs of different ideological dispositions do not participate less than those who read only blogs of one ideological disposition. Instead, readers of both left- and rightwing blogs and readers of exclusively leftwing blogs participate at similar levels, and both participate more than readers of exclusively rightwing blogs. This may reflect social movement-building efforts by leftwing bloggers."

Findings: "We demonstrate that outrage discourse is extensive, takes many different forms (we examine 13 different types), and spans media formats. We also show that while outrage tactics are largely the same for liberal and conservative media, conservative media use significantly more outrage speech than liberal media.... Partisanship, as measured by the voting behavior of legislators, is up quite sharply in the past few decades. It strains credulity to believe that the new and expanded ideological media has had nothing to do with this trend."

Findings: Detractors of digital activism have often "failed to recognize the placement of email [with]in the suite of campaign tactics used by progressive advocacy groups." Moreover, "the broader indictment of 'email campaigns' finds limited empirical support from an analysis of the membership communications originating from prominent progressive advocacy groups in America."

Findings: "Though much media attention has focused on the ability of campaigns to raise small donations on the Internet, the proportion of participation rates was roughly the same on- and offline: 38% of online donations were $50 or less, while the percentage was 39% offline; for donations of $51 to $100, the percentages were 28% and 29% respectively. Indeed, the digital divide appears to extend into the political realm, with "a strong positive relationship between [socioeconomic status] and - with the possible exception of political social networking - every measure of Internet-based political engagement we reviewed."

Findings: "Cyberspace is a domain of intense competition, one that creates an ever changing matrix of opportunities and constraints for social forces and ideas. These social forces and ideas, in turn, are imbued with alternative rationalities that collide with one another and affect the structure of the communications environment. Unless the characteristics of cyberspace change radically in the near future and global culture becomes monolithic, linking technological properties to a single social outcome such as liberation or control is a highly dubious exercise."

Findings: "We find that widely read political bloggers are much more likely to link to others who share their political views. However, we find no increase in this pattern over time. We also analyze the content of the links and find that while many of the links are based on straw-man arguments, bloggers across the political spectrum also address each others' writing substantively, both in agreement and disagreement."

Findings: "We anticipate that the fragmentation of the national audience reduces the likelihood of attitude change in response to particular patterns of news. The persuasion and framing paradigms require some observable level of attitude change in response to a media stimulus. As media audiences devolve into smaller, like-minded subsets of the electorate, it becomes less likely that media messages will do anything other than reinforce prior predispositions.... Findings suggesting that audiences have been persuaded by a message will be suspect because discrete media audiences will tend to self-select for preference congruence."
Keywords: news, Twitter, Facebook, social media, research roundup
Last updated: March 15, 2013

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Effects of the Internet on politics: Research roundup - Journalist's Resource

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As the Internet plays a larger role in governance, campaigns and activism, the debate continues about how social and digital media are changing politics. Ongoing research is addressing topics such as whether or not the Internet is leading to increased political polarization - the tendency of like-minded individuals to cluster even closer together in their habits and viewpoints.

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Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech

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Social media matrix

Some 36% of internet users say that they use just one of the five social media sites specified in this report (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn), while 42% use two or more of these sites. The remaining 22% of internet users have not adopted any of the five major platforms we asked about in our survey.

Among those internet users who only use one of these five major social networking platforms, 8% use LinkedIn, 4% use Pinterest, and 2% each say that Instagram or Twitter is their sole social networking site. The remaining 84% say that Facebook is the one social networking site they use.

Facebook is by far the most commonly-used social networking platform, and as a result, a significant majority of Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn users also use Facebook. At the low end, 83% of LinkedIn users also use Facebook. At the high end, 93% of Instagram users also use Facebook (Instagram's parent company). About a quarter of Facebook users use each of the other sites.

Turning to sites other than Facebook, a significant level of overlap exists between Instagram and Twitter users - 53% of Twitter users also use Instagram, and 53% of Instagram users also use Twitter. Among non-Facebook sites, this is the highest rate of "reciprocity" between user groups we measured.

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Some 36% of internet users say that they use just one of the five social media sites specified in this report (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn), while 42% use two or more of these sites. The remaining 22% of internet users have not adopted any of the five major platforms we asked about in our survey.

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Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech

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Overview

Since 2006, blogging has dropped among teens and young adults while simultaneously rising among older adults. As the tools and technology embedded in social networking sites change, and use of the sites continues to grow, youth may be exchanging 'macro-blogging' for microblogging with status updates.

Blogging has declined in popularity among both teens and young adults since 2006. Blog commenting has also dropped among teens.

14% of online teens now say they blog, down from 28% of teen internet users in 2006.

This decline is also reflected in the lower incidence of teen commenting on blogs within social networking websites; 52% of teen social network users report commenting on friends' blogs, down from the 76% who did so in 2006.

By comparison, the prevalence of blogging within the overall adult internet population has remained steady in recent years. Pew Internet surveys since 2005 have consistently found that roughly one in ten online adults maintain a personal online journal or blog.

While blogging among adults as a whole has remained steady, the prevalence of blogging within specific age groups has changed dramatically in recent years. Specifically, a sharp decline in blogging by young adults has been tempered by a corresponding increase in blogging among older adults.

In December 2007, 24% of online 18-29 year olds reported blogging, compared with 7% of those thirty and older.

By 2009, just 15% of internet users ages 18-29 maintain a blog-a nine percentage point drop in two years. However, 11% of internet users ages thirty and older now maintain a personal blog.

Both teen and adult use of social networking sites has risen significantly, yet there are shifts and some drops in the proportion of teens using several social networking site features.

73% of wired American teens now use social networking websites, a significant increase from previous surveys. Just over half of online teens (55%) used social networking sites in November 2006 and 65% did so in February 2008.

As the teen social networking population has increased, the popularity of some sites' features has shifted. Compared with SNS activity in February 2008, a smaller proportion of teens in mid-2009 were sending daily messages to friends via SNS, or sending bulletins, group messages or private messages on the sites.

47% of online adults use social networking sites, up from 37% in November 2008.

Young adults act much like teens in their tendency to use these sites. Fully 72% of online 18-29 year olds use social networking websites, nearly identical to the rate among teens, and significantly higher than the 39% of internet users ages 30 and up who use these sites.

Adults are increasingly fragmenting their social networking experience as a majority of those who use social networking sites - 52% - say they have two or more different profiles. That is up from 42% who had multiple profiles in May 2008.

Facebook is currently the most commonly-used online social network among adults. Among adult profile owners 73% have a profile on Facebook, 48% have a profile on MySpace and 14% have a LinkedIn profile.

The specific sites on which young adults maintain their profiles are different from those used by older adults: Young profile owners are much more likely to maintain a profile on MySpace (66% of young profile owners do so, compared with just 36% of those thirty and older) but less likely to have a profile on the professionally-oriented LinkedIn (7% vs. 19%). In contrast, adult profile owners under thirty and those thirty and older are equally likely to maintain a profile on Facebook (71% of young profile owners do so, compared with 75% of older profile owners).

Teens are not using Twitter in large numbers. While teens are bigger users of almost all other online applications, Twitter is an exception.

8% of internet users ages 12-17 use Twitter. This makes Twitter as common among teens as visiting a virtual world, and far less common than sending or receiving text messages as 66% of teens do, or going online for news and political information, done by 62% of online teens.

Older teens are more likely to use Twitter than their younger counterparts; 10% of online teens ages 14-17 do so, compared with 5% of those ages 12-13.

High school age girls are particularly likely to use Twitter. Thirteen percent of online girls ages 14-17 use Twitter, compared with 7% of boys that age.

Using different wording, we find that 19% of adult internet users use Twitter or similar services to post short status updates and view the updates of others online.

Young adults lead the way when it comes to using Twitter or status updating. One-third of online 18-29 year olds post or read status updates.

Wireless internet use rates are especially high among young adults, and the laptop has replaced the desktop as the computer of choice among those under thirty.

81% of adults between the ages of 18 and 29 are wireless internet users. By comparison, 63% of 30-49 year olds and 34% of those ages 50 and up access the internet wirelessly.

Roughly half of 18-29 year olds have accessed the internet wirelessly on a laptop (55%) or on a cell phone (55%), and about one quarter of 18-29 year-olds (28%) have accessed the internet wirelessly on another device such as an e-book reader or gaming device.

The impact of the mobile web can be seen in young adults' computer choices. Two-thirds of 18-29 year olds (66%) own a laptop or netbook, while 53% own a desktop computer. Young adults are the only age cohort for which laptop computers are more popular than desktops.

African Americans adults are the most active users of the mobile web, and their use is growing at a faster pace than mobile internet use among white or Hispanic adults.

Cell phone ownership is nearly ubiquitous among teens and young adults, and much of the growth in teen cell phone ownership has been driven by adoption among the youngest teens.

Three-quarters (75%) of teens and 93% of adults ages 18-29 now have a cell phone.

In the past five years, cell phone ownership has become mainstream among even the youngest teens. Fully 58% of 12-year olds now own a cell phone, up from just 18% of such teens as recently as 2004.

Internet use is near-ubiquitous among teens and young adults. In the last decade, the young adult internet population has remained the most likely to go online.

93% of teens ages 12-17 go online, as do 93% of young adults ages 18-29. One quarter (74%) of all adults ages 18 and older go online.

Over the past ten years, teens and young adults have been consistently the two groups most likely to go online, even as the internet population has grown and even with documented larger increases in certain age cohorts (e.g. adults 65 and older).

Our survey of teens also tracked some core internet activities by those ages 12-17 and found:

62% of online teens get news about current events and politics online.

48% of wired teens have bought things online like books, clothing or music, up from 31% who had done so in 2000 when we first asked about this.

31% of online teens get health, dieting or physical fitness information from the internet. And 17% of online teens report they use the internet to gather information about health topics that are hard to discuss with others such as drug use and sexual health topics.

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Since 2006, blogging has dropped among teens and young adults while simultaneously rising among older adults. As the tools and technology embedded in social networking sites change, and use of the sites continues to grow, youth may be exchanging 'macro-blogging' for microblogging with status updates.

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YOUNG GROUP OF PPL USE SOCIAL MEDIA MORE THAN OTHER GROUPS 

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YOUNG GROUP OF PPL USE SOCIAL MEDIA MORE THAN OTHER GROUPS 

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Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech

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Social Networking Sites

The number of social networking site users continues to grow
As of May 2013, almost three quarters (72%) of online U.S. adults use social networking sites, up from 67% in late 2012. When we first started asking about social networking sites in February 2005, just 8% of online adults said they used social networking sites.

In addition to asking about general usage of social networking sites in our current survey, we included a stand-alone question about Twitter and found that 18% of online adults are now Twitter users. This is roughly double the 8% of online adults who used Twitter in November 2010, the first time we asked about Twitter as a stand-alone platform.

Today, social networking site use is a major activity for internet users from a wide range of demographic groups. Younger adults are especially avid adopters, but social networking continues to grow in popularity for older adults as well. Six out of ten internet users ages 50-64 are social networking site users, as are 43% of those ages 65 and older.

Although online seniors are less likely than other age groups to use social networking sites, adoption rates for those 65 and older have tripled in the last four years (from 13% in the spring of 2009 to 43% now).

Twitter

The percentage of internet users who are on Twitter has more than doubled since November 2010, currently standing at 18%. Internet users ages 18-29 are the most likely to use Twitter.

The following chart shows Twitter use by age group, over time:

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72% of Online Adults are Social Networking Site Users | Pew Research Center

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The number of social networking site users continues to grow As of May 2013, almost three quarters (72%) of online U.S. adults use social networking sites, up from 67% in late 2012. When we first started asking about social networking sites in February 2005, just 8% of online adults said they used social networking sites.

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Accounts of Heroism and Sacrifice in Ferry Disaster

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As each day brings new tallies of the dead from the ferry sinking of the coast of South Africa, survivors tell of the heroes that gave their lives to help others.

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Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech

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Online and offline political engagement

This study examines online and offline political engagement and pays special attention to the role of social networking sites in people's political activities. There are several major findings:

Class differences, especially those related to educational attainment, are prominent in political engagement of all kinds, whether that activity takes place offline, online, or within the specific context of social networking sites (SNS), though the trend is somewhat more moderate in SNS.

There has been major growth in political activity on SNS between 2008 and this survey in 2012. The number of social networking site users has grown from 33% of the online population in 2008 to 69% of the online population in 2012. And there have been major jumps in the proportion of SNS users who post political news, who friend or follow candidates, and who joined an SNS group organized around political or social issues. In addition, notable shares of SNS users say their activity on the sites has prompted them to learn more about social or political issues and to take action around those issues.

For most politically active SNS users, social networking sites are not a separate realm of political activity. They are frequently active in other aspects of civic life.

Even as online platforms have grown more prominent in political affairs, Americans' day-to-day political conversations mostly occur offline.

The four ways we measured civic engagement

First, 48% of adults directly take part in a civic group or activity.

In this survey, the Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project measured several broad categories of civic activity that Americans might engage in. The first finding is that half (48%) of American adults directly took part in a civic group or activity in the 12 months preceding our August 2012 survey. This includes anyone who did one or more of the following six activities:

35% of American adults have recently worked with fellow citizens to solve a problem in their community

22% have attended a political meeting on local, town, or school affairs

13% have been an active member of a group that tries to influence the public or government

10% have attended a political rally or speech

7% have worked or volunteered for a political party or candidate

6% have attended an organized protest

Second, 39% of adults recently contacted a government official or spoke out in a public forum via offline methods. Third, 34% did those things via online methods.

In the second category of public engagement, we found that 39% of American adults have recently contacted a government official or spoken out in a public forum about an issue that is important to them via offline means. In the third category, we found that 34% have done so via online methods. This includes anyone who did one or more of the following activities that might take place in either online or offline spaces:

22% of American adults have recently signed a paper petition; 17% have signed a petition online.

21% of American adults have recently contacted a government official about an issue that is important to them in person, by phone, or by letter; 18% have done so online, by email, or by text message.

7% of American adults have recently called into a live radio or TV show to express an opinion about a political or social issue; 18% have commented on an online news story or blog post about this type of issue.

3% of American adults have sent a letter to the editor to a newspaper or magazine by regular mail; 4% have done so online, by email, or by text message.

Fourth, 39% of adults do political or civic activities on social networking sites.

In the fourth category, 39% of American adults took part in some sort of political activity in the context of a social networking site such as Facebook or Twitter in the 12 months preceding our survey. This includes anyone who did one or more of the following eight activities listed in the table below:

In total, nearly three-quarters (72%) of all American adults did at least one of the activities that we measured in those four broad categories of civic and political engagement.

Activities

Traditional political activities are most common among the well-educated and financially well-off, regardless of whether they take place online or offline. On social networking sites, income-related differences are more modest - but civic engagement in these spaces is still most prevalent among those with higher educational levels.

Those who live in higher income households and those with higher levels of education (specifically, those who have attended or graduated from college) are consistently more likely than those with lower income or education levels to take part in many of the online and offline civic behaviors we measured in this study. This gap is especially pronounced for the following specific activities:

Working with fellow citizens to solve a problem in one's community

Attending a political meeting on local, town, or school affairs

Being an active member of a group that tries to influence public policy or government

Attending a political rally or speech

Working or volunteering for a political party or candidate

Contacting a government official about an issue that is important to you (both online and offline)

Signing a petition (both digitally and on paper)

Commenting on a news story or blog post online

On the other hand, when it comes to the 60% of American adults who use social networking sites such as Facebook or Twitter, political participation is more balanced between lower and higher income Americans. Among social networking site users, political participation is identical for those who live in the lowest earning households (annual household income of less than $10,000) and highest earning households (annual household income of $150,000 or more).

Higher income Americans are more likely to use social networking sites in the first place, so income-related differences are evident when the base measurement applies to all adults - not just SNS users. But even on an "all adults" basis, the gap in political participation between the lowest and highest income groups is generally smaller on social networking sites than it is for other types of political engagement.

At the same time, even as differences in social networking engagement are less pronounced with respect to income, the college-educated are significantly more likely than those with a high school education to take part in nearly every SNS-related behavior we measured in our survey. And in contrast to income (where SNS users in the lowest and highest categories were equally likely to use these sites for political reasons) these educational differences persist even when we account for different levels of adoption between those with lower and higher education levels.

In other words, even as the impact of income on political participation is more modest in the context of social networking sites, socio-economic distinctions related to education still play a prominent role in these spaces.

More broadly, those at the lower end of the socio-economic spectrum are generally less involved with the day-to-day outreach, chatter, and discussion around political issues - regardless of whether those discussions take place in physical or digital spaces. Compared with the well-educated and financially well-off, they are much less likely to receive political communications through a variety of channels, or to have conversations about political or social issues with others in either online or offline venues. Ultimately, political issues, political activity, and political discussion are less present in the lives of these Americans than they are for those at the upper end of the socio-economic scale.

Younger adults are just as likely as older adults to be engaged in many political activities, and are much more likely to be politically active on social networking sites.

Most types of political engagement are equally commonplace among Americans of different generations. There are only modest age-related differences when it comes to getting involved in political groups or in-person activities, speaking out publicly in online spaces, or speaking out publicly in offline spaces.

Social networking sites (SNS) stand in contrast to these other venues. Political engagement on social networking sites is especially commonplace among the youngest Americans, as two-thirds (67%) of all 18-24 year olds (and nearly three quarters of those young adults who use social networking sites) engaged in some sort of social network-related political activity in the 12 months preceding our survey. Older adults tend to be fairly politically active on social networking sites to the extent that they use them, but are relatively unlikely to use these sites in the first place. So, although nearly six in ten SNS-using seniors are politically active on these sites, that works out to just 13% of all Americans in the 65+ age group.

Indeed, the youngest American adults are more likely to engage in political behaviors on social networking sites than in any other venue. And the typical (median) 18-29 year old took part in three of the eight SNS-oriented political behaviors measured in this survey. The general youth of the "political SNS user" group also helps to explain the balance between high- and low-income users when it comes to political activity in these spaces, since many of these younger adults are only beginning their careers and have not fully maximized their earning potential.
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There has been major growth in political activity on social networking sites since 2008, and discussions on social networking sites can lead to further engagement with political issues.

The structure of political activity on social networking sites has grown in importance in recent years. The number of social networking site users has grown from 33% of the online population in 2008 to 69% of the online population in 2012. And as the overall SNS user population has grown, more of these users are engaging in one way or another with political or social issues on these sites, compared with 2008 when we asked a similar set of questions about this subject. Here are some of the key areas of growth:

In 2008, 11% of social networking site users said that they used these sites to post political news for others to read - at the time that worked out to just 3% of all adults. In 2012, 28% of SNS users (representing 17% of all adults) said they posted links to political stories or articles and 33% (representing 19% of all adults) said they posted other types of political content on these sites.

In 2008, 12% of social networking site users (representing 3% of all adults) said they had friended a political candidate on these sites. In 2012, 20% of users (representing 12% of all adults) said they have friended or followed a candidate or similar political figure.

In 2008, 13% of users (representing 3% of all adults) said they had started or joined a group on a social networking site organized around political or social issues. By 2012, the proportion of social networking site users who do this had risen to 21% (12% of all adults).

We also asked directly about the impact of social networking site discussions on users' political behaviors and found that:

43% of social networking site users say they have decided to learn more about a political or social issue because of something they read about on a social networking site.

18% of social networking site users say they have decided to take action involving a political or social issue because of something they read on those sites.

In each instance, users were evenly split between those who found out about the issue in question from someone they know personally, and those who found out about it from someone they don't know personally, such as an organization or public figure. Younger SNS users are especially likely to engage in deeper investigations of issues based on discussions within those sites, as are those with a college degree.

The world of politics on social networking sites is - for most users - not a separate domain of political activity. "Political social networking site users" are frequently (but not universally) active in other aspects of civic life.

Many discussions about the impact of the internet on political and civic life assume that the people who take part in political activities on social networking sites are separate and distinct from those who take part in political activities outside social networking sites. In fact, the typical politically active American is active in a range of venues - online, offline, and in social networking spaces - and those who get involved politically on social networking sites tend to take part in a wide range of behaviors that occur outside the boundaries of sites like Facebook or Twitter.

As noted above, 39% of Americans performed some sort of political activity on a social networking site in the 12 months preceding our survey. We refer to them throughout this report as "political social networking site (SNS) users," and these users tend to be active in many other areas of political or civic life:

63% of political SNS users have recently gotten involved in a political activity or group, such as attending a political meeting or working with fellow citizens to solve a problem in their community. The national average is 48%.

60% have expressed their opinion about a political or social issue via online channels - for example, by sending an email to a government official, or signing an online petition. The national average is 34%.

53% have expressed their opinion about a political or social issue via offline channels, for example, by sending a letter to a government official, or signing a paper petition. The national average is 39%.

20% have made a political contribution of some kind. This is statistically similar to the 16% rate within the population as a whole.

Adding these four categories together, some 83% of political SNS users also get involved in political or social issues in one way or another outside the bounds of social networking sites themselves.

Of course, this also means that 17% of political SNS users - representing 8% of the total adult population - engage in political activity on social networking sites but in no other online or offline venues. Demographically, this "politically active on social networking sites but not elsewhere" group tends to be younger, less affluent, and less well-educated than the larger group that participates politically on social networking spaces and also other venues. They also have less overall exposure to political communications and outreach, and are less likely to take part in interpersonal political "chatter." In other words, even as they interact with political issues on social networking sites, they tend to get involved with those issues with only modest intensity.

Even as online platforms have grown more prominent in recent years, Americans' day-to-day political conversations - and political contributions -are still more likely to take place offline.

Despite the increased prominence of online platforms when it comes to Americans' political activity, much of the day-to-day conversation around these issues takes place in traditional (offline) channels. On an "every day" level, Americans are three times as likely to discuss politics or public affairs with others through offline channels (in person, by phone call, or by letter) as they are through online channels. Even the most tech-savvy users - such as young adults, college graduates, or those with high incomes-discuss politics with greater frequency offline than online.

Similarly, the bulk of political campaign contributions happen offline, even as online donations have grown more prominent in recent years. Some 23% of political donors made only online contributions in 2012, yet the substantial majority of political donors (60%) make contributions only via offline methods (that is, in person, over the telephone, or via regular mail).

Mobilization and Outreach: Email and social network users are frequently contacted and asked to take part in civic activities within those online spaces.

Although online tools play a secondary role in Americans' day-to-day political discussions with others, they have more prominence when it comes to outreach by groups or organizations looking to encourage political action (such as donating money, contacting a public official, or working for a candidate or cause). Email is particularly notable in this regard: 21% of email users regularly get asked on email to take some action around a political or social issue - that works out to 18% of all Americans who regularly receive mobilization messages via email. Social network users also tend to receive relatively frequent calls to action within the context of these sites, as 13% of SNS users (representing 8% of all adults) regularly receive outreach messages on these sites.

Taking all of these communications modes together, some 65% of Americans are contacted at least occasionally by groups or individuals asking them to take some sort of civic or political action, with 33% saying they are contacted for this reason on a regular basis (once a week or more frequently). As with many of the civic behaviors discussed here, these contacts are reported more frequently by those with relatively high income and education levels, and those who receive frequent political communications tend to be highly active in various online and offline venues.

There are also some partisan differences among the different types of outreach. Conservatives and Republicans are more likely than liberals and Democrats to receive political "calls to action" in the mail, while liberals and Democrats are more likely than conservatives and Republicans to receive these messages on social networking sites.

Those who have been affected by the recent economic downturn are actively involved with political and social issues across a range of platforms.

Overall, some 56% of the population has experienced one or more of the following impacts in the preceding year as a result of the recent economic slowdown:

46% have cut back on the amount or quality of food they purchase

38% have put off medical or dental treatment

25% have delayed making a rent or house payment

Members of this "economically affected" group tend to have relatively low incomes compared with those who have not experienced these impacts, but are also relatively young and well-educated as a group. Moreover, the economically affected are fairly active when it comes to expressing themselves about the issues of the day in various online and offline venues. Compared with the 44% of Americans who have not experienced any of these impacts:

The "economically affected" are no less likely to own a cell phone, to use the internet, or to use social networking sites.

They are equally likely to directly take part in an in-person political group or activity. Indeed, they are slightly more likely to have recently attended an organized protest or a local political meeting.

They are equally likely to receive political outreach messages across a range of platforms.

They are equally likely to publicly speak out about issues that are important to them in online forums, and a bit more likely (by a 41%-36% margin) to do so in offline forums.

They are equally likely to take part in political actions or discussions on social networking sites, and are in fact a bit more likely (by a 35%-27% margin) to encourage others to take action about issues that are important to them on these spaces.

Campaign donations are one of the few areas where the "affected" stand out from the rest of the population. Some 13% have made a campaign contribution in the year preceding our survey (compared with 20% of those who have not experienced any of these impacts).

About this survey

This report is based on the findings of a survey on Americans' use of the Internet. The results in this report are based on data from telephone interviews conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International from July 16 to August 7, 2012, among a sample of 2,253 adults, age 18 and older. Telephone interviews were conducted in English and Spanish by landline (1,353) and cell phone (900, including 469 without a landline phone). For results based on the total sample, one can say with 95% confidence that the error attributable to sampling is plus or minus 2.3 percentage points. For results based Internet users (n=1,873), the margin of sampling error is plus or minus 2.5 percentage points.

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Sidney Verba, Kay Lehman Schlozman, and Henry Brady for generously contributing their time and expertise to the development of surveys of civic engagement in both 2008 and 2012.

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This study examines online and offline political engagement and pays special attention to the role of social networking sites in people's political activities. There are several major findings: Class differences, especially those related to educational attainment, are prominent in political engagement of all kinds, whether that activity takes place offline, online, or within the specific context of social networking sites (SNS), though the trend is somewhat more moderate in SNS.

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Protesters returned to the riot-scarred streets of Ferguson on Tuesday, a day after crowds looted businesses and set fire to buildings in a night of rage against a grand jury's decision not to indict the white police officer who killed Michael Brown.

Hundreds of additional National Guard troops rolled into Ferguson on Tuesday, a day after protesters looted businesses and set fire to buildings in a night of rage against a grand jury's decision not to indict the white police officer who killed Michael Brown.

Meanwhile, officer Darren Wilson broke his long public silence, insisting on national television that he could not have done anything differently in the confrontation with Brown.

In the aftermath of Monday's violence, Missouri governor Jay Nixon more than tripled the number of Guard soldiers sent to the St. Louis suburb, ordering the initial force of 700 to be increased to 2,200 in hopes that their presence would help local law enforcement keep order in the St. Louis suburb.

"Lives and property must be protected," Nixon said. "This community deserves to have peace."

About 50 protesters converged on a barricade guarded by 30 Guard members. The group chanted "Whose streets, our streets," "This is what democracy looks like" and "Hands up don't shoot."

Outside police headquarters in Ferguson, one woman was taken into custody after protesters threw what appeared to be smoke bombs, flares and frozen water bottles at a line of officers.

The protests had far less destructive power than Monday night. However, officers still used some tear gas and pepper spray, and demonstrators set a squad car on fire and broke windows at City Hall.

Police said over 40 people were arrested, with four charged with felonies.

Other demonstrations were held across the country for a second day. Hundreds of Seattle high school students walked out of classes, and several hundred people marched down a Cleveland freeway ramp to block rush-hour traffic.

During an interview with ABC News, Wilson said he has a clean conscience because "I know I did my job right."

First time he fired his gun

Wilson had been with the Ferguson police force for less than three years before the Aug. 9 shooting. He told ABC that Brown's shooting marked the first time he had fired his gun on the job.

Attorneys for the Brown family vowed to push for federal charges against Wilson and said the grand jury process was rigged from the start to clear Wilson.

"We said from the very beginning that the decision of this grand jury was going to be the direct reflection of the presentation of the evidence by the prosecutor's office," attorney Anthony Gray said. He suggested the county's top prosecutor, Bob McCulloch, presented some testimony to discredit the process, including from witnesses who did not see the shooting.

During the protests that erupted after the grand jury's decision, 12 commercial buildings in Ferguson burned down, and firefighters responded to blazes at eight others, fire officials said. Other businesses were looted, and 12 vehicles were torched.

By Tuesday afternoon, several businesses along West Florissant Avenue were already closed.

Natalie DuBose, owner of Natalie's Cakes and More, planned to spend Tuesday night at her business, which is only about a block from the Ferguson Police Department.

"I have to be here because I have orders that I have to complete for tomorrow and for Thursday because of the holiday. I just couldn't do it today because of the cleanup."

A window at her business was busted out in Monday night's turmoil.

"This is my livelihood," she said. "This is the only source of income I have to raise my children."

Brown's parents made public calls for peace in the run-up to Monday's announcement, and on Tuesday, their representatives again stressed that the people setting fires were not on Michael Brown's side.

Videos that were widely circulated on Tuesday showed Brown's mother, Lesley McSpadden, standing on top of a car and breaking down as the announcement of the grand jury decision blares over the stereo.

Her husband, Brown's stepfather, comforts her, then begins angrily yelling "Burn the bitch down!" to a crowd gathered around him. Asked about the comment at a news conference, family attorney Benjamin Crump said the reaction was, "raw emotion. Not appropriate at all. Completely inappropriate."

Protests block traffic

Attorneys for Brown's family said they hope an ongoing federal civil rights investigation leads to charges. But federal investigations of police misconduct face a steep legal standard, requiring proof that an officer willfully violated a victim's civil rights.

Testimony from Wilson that he felt threatened, and physical evidence almost certainly complicates any efforts to seek federal charges.

Under federal law, "you have to prove as a prosecutor that the officer knew at the moment that he pulled the trigger that he was using too much force, that he was violating the Constitution," said Seth Rosenthal, a former Justice Department civil rights prosecutor.

The Justice Department has also launched a broad probe into the Ferguson Police Department, looking for patterns of discrimination.

Federal probes are apace, attorney general says

Attorney General Eric Holder said the department aims to complete those investigations as quickly as possible "to restore trust, to rebuild understanding and to foster co-operation between law enforcement and community members."

Regardless of the outcome of the federal investigations, Brown's family also could file a wrongful-death lawsuit against Wilson.

Speaking in Chicago, President Barack Obama said he knows the grand jury's decision "upset a lot of people" but that the "the frustrations that we've seen are not just about a particular incident. They have deep roots in many communities of colour who have a sense that our laws are not always being enforced uniformly or fairly."

Wilson's lawyers issued a statement praising the decision and saying the officer is grateful to his supporters.

"Law enforcement personnel must frequently make split-second and difficult decisions," the lawyers wrote. "Officer Wilson followed his training and followed the law."

Scott Holtgrieve, a St. Louis County man who attended an August fundraiser on Wilson's behalf, always viewed with skepticism witness accounts that Wilson shot Brown while Brown held his hands up in a form of surrender and was on his knees.

"What they were saying just didn't seem rational - that an officer would shoot someone in cold blood that way at point-blank range, especially in that neighbourhood where you know a lot of people are watching," Holtgrieve said.

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'I know I did my job right': Ferguson police officer reflects on Michael Brown shooting | CBC News

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Protesters returned to the riot-scarred streets of Ferguson on Tuesday night, a day after crowds looted businesses and set fire to buildings in a night of rage against a grand jury's decision not to indict the white police officer who killed Michael Brown.

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Updated September 30, 2014 22:20:10

The student-led pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong that have been dubbed the "umbrella revolution", gained momentum when the leader of a separate civil disobedience campaign announced a blockade would begin earlier than expected.

Benny Tai, one of the leaders of the Occupy Central movement, declared to loud cheers they would carry out a long-standing threat to paralyse the heart of the major financial hub.

The number of protesters swelled as the day went on. Some of the demonstrators brought umbrellas with them to shield themselves from the hot sun and pepper spray.

The umbrellas have since taken on a symbolic meaning leading this movement to be dubbed the "umbrella revolution".

Student groups and pro-democracy activists are angry at the Chinese government's decision to vet candidates for Hong Kong's first direct elections in 2017.

They felt it was unfair that nominees for the top job in the former British colony would be pre-screened and that they had been robbed of a promise.

Chinese authorities pointed out that Britain had never given democracy to Hong Kong in the 156 years it administered the city. They also said the Occupy Central campaign is illegal and disruptive to business.

Late on Sunday, police appeared in riot gear and rumours swirled on text messaging applications that something was about to happen.

"I was receiving a lot of information mainly through WhatsApp that the Peoples Liberation Army would become involved and that police were armed with long guns, rifles, real bullets, rubber bullets, whatever. I was so confused," journalism student Lydia Sung said.

Hong Kong police fired 87 rounds of tear gas on peaceful demonstrators that night.

After the clashes, the 20-year-old teamed up with a friend to create an account on Facebook that would attempt to separate fact from fiction. They decided on a name that was simple and descriptive, calling it LIVE: Verified updates.

The team behind the page has since grown to around 25 with 15 student reporters on the ground filing reports late into the night.

One of the posts that appeared at 2:00am (local time) was about a car that drives through a crowd in Mongkok, one of the main protest areas. There were no reported injuries at that stage.

"Right now it's getting crazy again," an exhausted Ms Sung said, referring to the rumours.

Stories of triad members driving cars into a crowd, people sustaining injuries from broken glass bottles and metal pipes found on the ground are just some of the things she has heard.

Ms Sung also believes constant comparisons to the 1989 student crackdown on Tiananmen Square are fuelling paranoia.

Censors target social media

Social media is proving to be a double-edged sword in this movement.

Text messaging applications like WhatsApp are being used by the masses to communicate because they are free to download onto smartphones and cost Hong Kong residents next to nothing to use.

And in this city - one of the most wired in Asia - the predominantly young demonstrators of Hong Kong have also thought of ways to disseminate information with their mobiles should the authorities decide to cut internet reception to these devices.

The developers of FireChat said the app was downloaded more than 100,000 times in Hong Kong in just 24 hours.

Even though the apps are being used to cause alarm, King Wah Fu, a journalism lecturer from Hong Kong University, is confident Hong Kong residents are discerning enough not to be rattled.

"Based on my observation Hong Kong people are very smart," he said.

"They are very sceptical about the information they get from social media."

While information and misinformation churns in the streets of Hong Kong, Chinese censors on Weibo, China's equivalent of Twitter, are working overtime to present a managed picture about what is happening across the border.

What is available are reports reiterating the official line. The photo sharing application Instagram is now blocked in China.

The graph on Weiboscope is telling of censorship trends. This software, co-developed by Dr Fu, scans posts made by 50 to 60,000 Chinese microblog accounts. If a message becomes inaccessible then it is added to the list of censored posts.

According to Weiboscope, 152 out of every 10,000 posts were erased on Sunday, the day when Hong Kong police moved to clear the streets. That level of censorship had risen more than four times since Friday.

The speed at which Chinese censors scrub these posts off the virtual wall depends on the time the messages were sent and whether they are sent in the form of text or images.

Images require more time to track down and erase because there are not any words or phrases in the post that will trigger the alarm in the software.

That is why some bold supporters in China published photographs of themselves on Weibo holding up messages of support for demonstrators in Hong Kong.

A few of them have reportedly been taken away by mainland Chinese police. One was released after being detained briefly and told she could not to travel to either Beijing or Hong Kong.

What happens next?

The Occupy Central movement wants Hong Kong's chief executive Leung Chun Ying to resign. Demonstrators also want the government in Beijing to change the terms and conditions of the 2017 elections.

Beijing's response has been to warn the international community not to interfere while saying it trusts the Hong Kong government to act according to the law.

The standoff is continuing even on the eve of China's national day which is also a public holiday in Hong Kong.

This is traditionally a time when Hong Kong retailers would be gearing up for large groups of mainland Chinese tourists on a week-long break.

If the streets have not been cleared by then, travellers will get a glimpse of a mass campaign that would not be tolerated on the mainland.

"Actually the scale of the protests depends on what happens tomorrow (September 30)... It is the crucial day," Ms Sung said.

The Chinese Communist Party would rather the attention be on the advancement the country has made 65 years since it came to power.

Topics: activism-and-lobbying, social-media, information-and-communication, censorship, government-and-politics

First posted September 30, 2014 20:19:41

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Social media a double-edged sword in Hong Kong protests

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Updated September 30, 2014 22:20:10 The student-led pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong that have been dubbed the "umbrella revolution", gained momentum when the leader of a separate civil disobedience campaign announced a blockade would begin earlier than expected.

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How have student organisers mobilised tens of thousands of protesters to sites across Hong Kong - facilitating supply routes, warning of assaults on protest camps, coordinating teams of medics? Social media. Facebook, WhatsApp and the new bluetooth-enabled FireChat lie at the heart of the Umbrella movement's success

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Hong Kong protests: a social media revolution - video

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How have student organisers mobilised tens of thousands of protesters to sites across Hong Kong - facilitating supply routes, warning of assaults on protest camps, coordinating teams of medics? Social media. Facebook, WhatsApp and the new bluetooth-enabled FireChat lie at the heart of the Umbrella movement's success

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Kim Yung-oh is not exactly sure how much weight he has lost. But when he undoes his belt buckle, his pants bunch around his concave belly. Twenty pounds, he estimates.

Kim, whose 16-year-old daughter was one of 304 people who died when the Sewol ferry sank in April, will on Wednesday enter the 24th day of a hunger strike - staged on Gwanghwamun Plaza, a wide median strip along a central Seoul boulevard that leads toward the presidential Blue House.

The plaza is also where Pope Francis will celebrate an open-air Mass next week - and Kim is vowing to stay put.

"No matter what, I want to stay here and appeal to the pope," Kim said weakly during an interview on an elevated platform under a tent on the plaza, part of a protest against perceived government obfuscation over the cause of the ferry disaster.

The pope is scheduled to meet with the Sewol families during his visit, but in Daejeon, a city about 100 miles south of Seoul. Nonetheless, protesters know they have some leverage over President Park Geun-hye's administration as it prepares for the pontiff's arrival.

The April 16 capsizing of the Sewol - an overloaded ferry transporting an estimated 476 people and far too many containers from the mainland to the southern island of Jeju - remains an active tragedy in South Korea.

Ten passengers have still not been found, and Seoul's City Hall remains a carefully tended memorial - complete with funereal chrysanthemums - to the victims, the vast majority of whom were students from one high school.

'We want to know how our children died'

On Gwanghwamun Plaza, a few blocks from City Hall, Kim sits on his platform, alongside tents designated for victims' families, religious figures and other supporters. On Tuesday, a group of Catholic nuns, Buddhist monks and Protestant ministers joined Kim in his hunger strike for the day. Supporters handed out free cups of fresh iced coffee to passersby while a TV screen played footage from video shot inside the ferry, by students unaware of the fate about to befall them.

"We want to know how our children died. That's all," said Park Yung-woo, a math teacher whose daughter drowned.

The families are urging the country's president to set up a special investigative panel with a greater proportion of members appointed by victims' kin than by the government. But, more important, they also want the panel to have the authority to subpoena information it needs and prosecute people it suspects of wrongdoing.

"The parents want truth from the government," said Won Jae-min, a lawyer who has been helping the families. "We are asking for an independent body of inspectors to look into this case, and we are demanding the government to give them special legal powers so they are able to investigate."

Park and her ruling Saenuri Party had vowed to establish an independent commission, and the main opposition party had agreed in principle. But they are divided on the details. The deadlock led to the cancellation of hearings scheduled for this week.

The families are calling for the special panel to be established because Park's administration is widely accused of bungling its response to the tragedy and not being sufficiently forthcoming with the facts. That has led to rumors of government complicity and a cover-up.

An ongoing criminal investigation has shown that dangerous modifications were made to the ferry - including the addition of an extra floor - and that the ballast water meant to counterweigh the cargo had been emptied out, so as not to alert regulators to the changes.

Adding fuel to the suspicions, authorities took almost six weeks to identify a body they now think is that of Yoo Byung-eun, the 73-year-old owner of the Sewol ferry operator, Chonghaejin Marine, who had been on the run since the sinking.

The decomposed body was found June 12 just two miles from one of Yoo's houses. Even though the deceased was dressed in designer clothing, police said they initially thought it was a homeless person until DNA tests indicated in late July that it was Yoo.

People wondered why it took so long to identify a man who was the subject of the largest manhunt in South Korean history.

Willing to die for his cause

Park, whose approval rating has slumped since the disaster, criticized police and prosecutors Tuesday for their missteps, noting that they continued searching for Yoo even after the body was found.

"The bungled manhunt resulted in the waste of national resources and severely undermined public confidence in the government," she said during a cabinet meeting, the Yonhap news agency reported.

At the protest site Tuesday, families handed out pamphlets bearing a photo of a moist-eyed Park expressing remorse for the ferry sinking. The headline read: "Were the president's tears just lies?" Volunteers urged people to sign a petition calling on the administration to establish the independent inquiry commission.

Throughout, Kim sat on his platform in the sweltering heat, nodding at well-wishers who stopped to bow to him.

A sign on a bib he was wearing marked the number of days he had been fasting and carried an appeal: "Madam President, please bury me next to my love Yu-min if this powerless dad falls and dies."

"I feel ready to die for this," Kim said, sitting cross-legged on a gray pillow, his thin wrists resting on his knees. "I feel so sorry that I couldn't save my daughter that day and that I can't do anything to bring her back."

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Korean ferry victims' families say they won't budge from protest site - not even for the pope

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Kim Yung-oh is not exactly sure how much weight he has lost. But when he undoes his belt buckle, his pants bunch around his concave belly. Twenty pounds, he estimates.

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Pew Research Center's Journalism Project

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Obama Leads but Neither Candidate Engages in Much Dialogue with Voters
WATCH A NARRATED SLIDESHOW OF THE FINDINGS
If presidential campaigns are in part contests over which candidate masters changing communications technology, Barack Obama on the eve of the conventions holds a substantial lead over challenger Mitt Romney.

A new study of how the campaigns are using digital tools to talk directly with voters-bypassing the filter of traditional media-finds that the Obama campaign posted nearly four times as much content as the Romney campaign and was active on nearly twice as many platforms. [1] Obama's digital content also engendered more response from the public-twice the number of shares, views and comments of his posts.

Just as John McCain's campaign did four years ago, Romney's campaign has taken steps over the summer to close the digital gap-and now with the announcement of the Romney-Ryan ticket made via the Romney campaign app may take more. The Obama campaign, in turn, has tried to adapt by recently redesigning its website.

These are among the findings of a detailed study of the websites of the two campaigns as well as their postings on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube-and the public reaction to that content-conducted by the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism.

In theory, digital technology allows leaders to engage in a new level of "conversation" with voters, transforming campaigning into something more dynamic, more of a dialogue, than it was in the 20 th century. For the most part, however, the presidential candidates are using their direct messaging mainly as a way to push their messages out. Citizen content was only minimally present on Romney's digital channels. The Obama campaign made more substantial use of citizen voices-but only in one area: the "news blog" on its website where that content could be completely controlled.

The study of the direct messaging of the candidates also reveals something about the arguments the two sides are using to win voters. Romney's campaign was twice as likely to talk about Obama (about a third of his content) as the president was to talk about his challenger (14% of his content). That began to change some in late July when the Obama campaign revamped its website.

And while the troubled economy was the No. 1 issue in both candidates' digital messaging, the two camps talk about that issue in distinctly different ways. Romney's discussion focuses on jobs. Obama's discussion of the economy is partly philosophical, a discourse on the importance of the middle class and competing visions for the future.

This is the fourth presidential election cycle in which the Project for Excellence in Journalism has analyzed digital campaign communications. This year, in addition to the campaign websites, PEJ broadened its analysis to include an in-depth examination of content posted on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, areas that were either in their infancy or that candidates made no use of four years ago. The study encompassed an examination of the direct messaging from the campaigns for 14 days during the summer, from June 4 to June 17, 2012, a period in which the two campaigns together published a total of 782 posts. The study also included audits of the candidates' websites in June and again in late July.

The changes from 2008 go beyond the candidates adding social media channels. The Obama campaign has also localized its digital messaging significantly, adding state-by-state content pages filled with local information. It has also largely eliminated a role for the mainstream press. Four years ago the Obama campaign used press clips to validate his candidacy. The website no longer features a "news" section with recent media reports. Now the only news of the day comes directly from the Obama campaign itself. (In the recent redesign, the Obama campaign also highlighted its "Truth Team" section which includes its criticism of the Romney economic plan as well as their accounting of Obama's initiatives-also as determined by the Obama campaign.)

The Romney website, by contrast, contains a page dedicated to accounts about the candidate from the mainstream news media, albeit only those speaking positively of Romney or negatively of Obama.
Among the study's findings:

Obama's campaign has made far more use of direct digital messaging than Romney's. Across platforms, the Obama campaign published 614 posts during the two weeks examined compared with 168 for Romney. The gap was the greatest on Twitter, where the Romney campaign averaged just one tweet per day versus 29 for the Obama campaign (17 per day on @BarackObama, the Twitter Account associated with his presidency, and 12 on @Obama2012, the one associated with his campaign). [2] Obama also produced about twice as many blog posts on his website as did Romney and more than twice as many YouTube videos.

The campaign is about the economy, but what that means differs depending on to whom one is listening. Roughly a quarter, 24%, of the content from the Romney campaign was about the economy versus 19% of Obama campaign posts. But Romney devoted nearly twice the attention as Obama to jobs. Obama's attention to the economy was almost equally divided between jobs and broader economic policy issues such as the need to invest in the middle class and how the election presents a choice between two economic visions. Another striking finding in the topics of the digital conversation is how much the agenda has changed in just four years. Gone from four years ago are web pages focused on veterans, agriculture, ethics, Iraq and technology. New are pages about tax policy-and the two campaigns overlap on fewer issues than Obama and McCain did.

The economy may have dominated both candidates' digital messaging, but it was not what voters showed the most interest in. On average Obama's messages about the economy generated 361 shares or retweets per post. His posts about immigration, by comparison, generated more than four times that reaction; and his posts about women's and veterans' issues generated more than three times. This was also true of attention to Romney's messaging. His posts on health care and veterans averaged almost twice the response per post of his economic messages.

Neither campaign made much use of the social aspect of social media. Rarely did either candidate reply to, comment on, or "retweet" something from a citizen-or anyone else outside the campaign. On Twitter, 3% of the 404 Obama campaign tweets studied during the June period were retweets of citizen posts. Romney's campaign produced just a single retweet during these two weeks-repeating something from his son Josh.

Campaign websites remain the central hub of digital political messaging. Even if someone starts on a campaign's social network page, they often end up back on the main website-to donate money, to join a community, to volunteer or to read anything of length. A July redesign of the Obama page emphasized the centrality of the campaign website further. Rather than sending users to the campaign's YouTube channel, the video link now embeds the campaign videos directly into the website, where the only videos are the ones Obama wants you to see.
Obama's digital strategy targets specific voter groups-as it did four years ago-to a greater degree than Romney's.
Visitors to Obama's website are offered opportunities to join 18 different constituency groups, among them African-Americans, women, LGBT, Latinos, veterans/military families or young Americans. If you click to join a group, you then begin to receive content targeted to that constituency. The Romney campaign offered no such groups in June. It has since added a Communities page that by early August featured nine groups.

How important is digital campaigning: does more digital activity really translate into more votes?

In 2004, Howard Dean used the web to generate early support and fundraising, but he failed to convert that into caucus or primary turnout. Barack Obama more successfully converted his use of the web in 2008 to stage an insurgent campaign and win younger voters.

But some may question whether younger voters were attracted to Obama because of his digital activity or whether Obama used digital platforms because it was a logical way to reach a natural voter base.

While there may be no simple answer, throughout modern campaign history successful candidates have tended to outpace their competitors in understanding changing communications. From Franklin Roosevelt's use of radio, to John F. Kennedy's embrace of television, to Ronald Reagan's recognition of the potential for arranging the look and feel of campaign events in the age of satellites and video tape, candidates quicker to grasp the power of new technology have used that to convey a sense that they represented a new generation of leadership more in touch with where the country was heading.

PEJ began studying the role of digital technology in presidential politics in 2000. In our first report, " ePolitics," candidate websites were yet to emerge; news websites and "web portals" were the gatekeepers of digital campaign information. PEJ that year studied 12 of the most popular sites and portals providing campaign news, a list that included Salon, the Washington Post and Netscape. The study found an emphasis on updating tidbits of information throughout the day, so much so that sometimes the most important event of the day-or week-never became headline news. On February 28, 2000, for instance, AOL never led with John McCain's speech in Virginia Beach attacking Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell, even though it was not only the story of the day but a critical event of his campaign.

In 2004, PEJ re-examined the sites still in existence (and added two others); websites that year made a significant push toward offering users a chance to compare candidates on the issues-something almost entirely absent in 2000. News websites were also beginning to provide opportunities for users to manipulate and customize information; navigation, however, was often difficult. It was also the election cycle in which candidate Howard Dean transformed political campaigns by becoming the first candidate to use blogging, to use his website to organize "meetups," and to use other internet technology as a major part of his campaign.

By 2008, candidate websites were standard, and campaigns were clearly taking steps to try to control their message in ways that bypassed the traditional media. This was the year that Hillary Clinton announced her candidacy on her web page; and Barack Obama, albeit not entirely successfully, announced Joe Biden as his running mate on his website. Obama also used his site widely to invigorate a national grass roots campaign and built substantially on Dean's 2004 efforts to raise millions in small donations using the web. Our analysis also found that different candidates' campaigns differed widely in how well each had mastered technology.

In 2012, in short, voters are playing an increasingly large role in helping to communicate campaign messages, while the role of the traditional news media as an authority or validator has only lessened.
Footnote
1. For the time period studied (June 4, 2012 to June 17, 2012), this report considered those platforms that the candidates' respective websites listed and linked to.

2. This report studied the candidate's twitter accounts that the two campaigns linked to from their website homepage. There is another verified Romney campaign Twitter account, @TeamRomney, but it is not listed or linked to from MittRomney.com, and thus was not formally associated with the campaign in the same way as other content streams. Nor did the main Twitter account, @MittRomney, retweet or link to posts from @TeamRomney, at the time of the study. Researchers did count the tweets from @TeamRomney during the time of the study, June 4 - June 17, 2012. There were a total of 63 tweets which would bring the average activity across the two Romney accounts from one to 6 per day.

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How the Presidential Candidates Use the Web and Social Media | Pew Research Center

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On the eve of the conventions, Barack Obama holds a distinct advantage over Mitt Romney in the way his campaign is using digital technology to communicate directly with voters. The Obama campaign is posting almost four times as much content and is active on nearly twice as many platforms, according to a new study analyzing the content and volume of candidate communications on their websites and social media channels.

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outline- needs to be changed

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Nov. 25 body structure with james

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Nov. 27 body

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WRITING FOR SUCCESS