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Teens Online in Record Numbers

A new report by the Pew Internet & American Life Project finds that Internet usage among United States teens, ages 12 through 17, has increased to nearly 90 percent. The number is up from 75 percent of teenagers having Internet access in 2000. According to the group, by comparison, only about 66 percent of American adults use the Internet. The group surveyed teens and found that the Internet played an important role in their daily lives. About half of young people use the Internet on a daily basis, up from 42 percent in 2000. Among popular activities, unsurprisingly, are instant messaging (IM) and photo sharing. If given a choice, 50 percent of the teens surveyed were more likely to use a traditional phones versus 25 percent preferring IM to actually talking to their friends. What surprised researchers is that teen girls, ages 15 to 17, were the most intense Internet and cell phone users, including text messages.

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