July 30, 2008, - 11:37 am
Attn, Sharpton & Jackson: Sistaz Ain’t Got No “Digital Divide”
By Debbie Schlussel
For years, race merchants Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson have been whining about an alleged “digital divide”. They’ve claimed that Blacks are deliberately discriminated against by internet technology and alleged “barriers” like the cost of computers and internet service. That’s despite the gazillion Black blogs and websites.
Now, there’s more evidence that not only aren’t Blacks on the short end of an alleged “digital divide,” but in the case of Black women, they are ahead of everyone else in terms of the amount of time spent on technology usage:
Black women are more likely than other female consumers to spend time embracing technology, and they view cell phones and the Internet as tools of empowerment and self-expression, a study finds.
Compared to other women, five times as many black women – 36 percent – use cell phones for three or more hours a day, according to research released Thursday by Time Inc.’s Essence magazine. Black women also spend more extended time using iPods, computers, high-definition TVs and DVD players.
The findings defy an image of technology consumers focused on young men, said Carmen Bryant, director of consumer research for Essence.
“All women use technology to gain control in their lives,” Bryant said. But, she said, African-American women also use technology as “a way to empower themselves to move forward.”
“They like to show their mastery of technology,” she said. “They are going to use it to help them stay active and achieving.” . . .
The survey found 42 percent of black women reported spending $100 to $499 or more on cell phones compared to 26 percent of other women.
Black women also embrace new mobile technology, with 21 percent of them using cell phone Web browsers to make purchases compared to 8 percent of other women.
That’s in line with other findings about gadget mastery: nearly two-thirds of black women said they learn every feature of a new tech product.
Bryant said that helps explain why their cell phone use is so much higher, since they go beyond the calling or texting functions and use built-in Web browsers, cameras and digital organizers.
Black women also are more likely to use the Web for product research, and they are more than twice as likely to use e-mail or instant messaging to share good deals with friends and family. . . .
The Essence study included an online survey of 800 black women and 400 non-black women ages 18 to 54. Participants had a minimum household income of $20,000 and were cell phone or Internet users.
The survey, conducted last April but only released now, has an error margin of 3.4 percentage points for the African-American women and 4.8 percentage points for “general market” women.
More results from the study:
African-American Women…………. General Market Women
36%……………….7%………………Say they use their cell phones for three or more hours a day.
8 %………………..1%………………Use their iPods for three or more hours a day.
42%………………26%……………..Report spending $100-$499 or more on cell phones.
21%……………….8%……………..Order products using the Web browser on their cell phone
43%………………20%……………..Reported contacting friends or family by e-mailing or IM if they saw a good deal for them.
So, will this news end the endless whining and shakedown attempts by Sharpton and Jackson? Don’t bet on it. They and facts are like oil and water. They don’t mix.
Like the House’s apology for slavery and Jim Crow yesterday? How they go to getting an apology from you, Debbie and from me? Whatever did we do or our ancestors did to merit our having to apologize for something that was never done in our name? They damned well aren’t to collect reparations from us!
NormanF on July 30, 2008 at 12:12 pm