Blogging Is All About Me

The majority of bloggers prefer to write about themselves and share their digital creations than to discuss politics or technology, a survey released Wednesday showed.

While high-traffic "A-list" bloggers who discuss topics covered by traditional media get most of the publicity, the fact is blogging in general is more of a personal experience, the Pew Internet & American Life Project said. More than three fourths of bloggers surveyed said they blog to document their own experiences and share them with others. More than six in 10 said they blog to share practical knowledge or skills with others.

"Blogs are as individual as the people who keep them, but this survey shows that most bloggers are primarily interested in creative, personal expression," Amanda Lenhart, senior research specialist at Pew, said in a statement.

The Pew study also showed that U.S. adult Internet users prefer to read, not write, blogs. About 12 million, or 8 percent of the total number of adult Internet users, post blogs, while 57 million, or 39 percent of the online population, read them.

Bloggers also tend to be a creative bunch. A whopping 77 percent have shared online something they've created themselves, such as artwork, photos, stories and videos. By comparison, only about one in four Internet users have done the same.The survey showed that only a minority of bloggers is interested in topics other than themselves. Only 11 percent focus on politics and government, 7 percent on entertainment, 6 percent on sports, 5 percent on general news, current events and business; 4 percent on technology and 2 percent on religion, spirituality or faith. Smaller groups wrote about a specific hobby, a health problem or illness, or other topics.

Getting feedback appeared to be important, with 87 percent of bloggers allowing comments on their blogs. Few bloggers are likely to get rich on their efforts, since only 8 percent earned money on their blogs. Anonymity appeared to be important, with more than half of bloggers using a pseudonym

The Pew report was based on in-depth surveys with 233 bloggers, and telephone surveys with 7,012 adults, including 4,753 Internet users. The data was gathered between July 2005 and April 2006.