The International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) this week allows technology developers to showcase the latest gadgets that may become must-haves for many Americans. As attendees get a glimpse of the industry’s future, Gallup finds that the devices Americans own have changed over the past decade, with ownership of laptops (64%) […] Read more »
Americans uneasy about surveillance but often use snooping tools
… Amid this year’s revelations about the federal government’s vast apparatus for tracking the movements and communications of people worldwide, Americans are uneasy with the extent of surveillance yet often use snooping tools in their own lives, a Washington Post poll has found. The sweet spot between liberty and security […] Read more »
Most Americans Don’t Know Bitcoin
Some Americans think Bitcoin is an Xbox game. Others think it might be an iPhone app. The majority have no idea it’s a virtual currency they can use to buy everything from T-shirts to Tesla Motors sedans, according to a Bloomberg National Poll. CONT. Clea Benson, Bloomberg Read more »
Online Holiday Shopping Rises, Still Trails Other Venues
As the Christmas shopping season gets underway in earnest this Friday, for the first time, a majority of Americans, 53%, say they are very or somewhat likely to do their Christmas shopping online this year. This is the highest percentage since Gallup first asked the question in 1998. Meanwhile, the […] Read more »
Older Americans’ Internet Use Up vs. 2002, but Still Lags
Americans’ self-reported Internet use has risen from 69% in 2002 to 87% today, but significant gaps in usage remain across age, education, and income groups. Over a third of seniors still do not use the Internet. CONT. Frank Newport & Michael Moffett, Gallup Read more »
The Information-Gathering Paradox
… The Internet industry, having nudged consumers to share heaps of information about themselves, has built a trove of personal data for government agencies to mine — erecting, perhaps unintentionally, what Alessandro Acquisti, a Carnegie Mellon University behavioral economist, calls “the de facto infrastructure of surveillance.” Nearly five months after […] Read more »