Report: Pew Research Show Broadband Use Among Latinos Growing

WASHINGTON, December 22, 2009 – Internet use among Latino adults has been increasing at a faster rate than those categorized as white or black adults, according to research released Tuesday by the Pew Hispanic Center, a project of the Pew Research Center.

“From 2006 to 2008, internet use among Latino adults rose by 10 percentage points, from 54 per to 64 percent. In comparison, the rates for whites rose four percentage points, and the rates for blacks rose only two percentage points during that time period.  Though Latinos continue to lag behind whites, the gap in internet use has shrunk considerably,” the study found.

The Pew researchers discovered an increase in internet use by foreign-born Latinos, those with less than a high school education, and Latinos with household incomes of less than $30,000. The research, which was based on eight landline telephone surveys, did not find a very significant increase in home internet access.

“While there was little increase in the likelihood of having a home connection among internet users from 2006 to 2008, rates of broadband connection increased dramatically for Hispanics, as well as for whites and blacks,” according to the Pew Hispanic Center.

“In 2006, 63 percent of Hispanics with home internet access had a broadband connection; in 2008 this number was 76 percent.  For whites, there was a 17 percentage point increase in broadband connection from 65 percent to 82 percent, and for blacks, the increase was from 63 percent in 2006 to 78 percent in 2008.”