Americans blog to express themselves creatively

The Pew Internet & American Life Project has released a report based on a telephone survey of 233 self-identified bloggers conducted between July 2005 and February 2006 to find out more about bloggers in America and why they blog. From Reuters:

About 77 percent of blog authors, or "bloggers," said they post to express themselves creatively rather to get noticed or paid, according to the report, released by the Pew Internet & American Life Project.

The report also found that 37 percent of bloggers cited their life and experiences as their primary topic, while politics and government came in second at 11 percent.

Entertainment was the next most-popular blog topic, with 7 percent, followed by sports, at 6 percent and news at 5 percent. Religion or spirituality was the aim of 2 percent.

About 8 percent of Internet users, or 12 million American adults, keep a blog, Pew estimated. Some 39 percent of U.S. Web users, or 57 million adults, read them, the researchers said.

More than half, or 54 percent, of bloggers are under age 30.