USA: Trust in the Internet is growing

Thanks to blogs and broadband connections, Americans are increasingly relying on the internet for political information. A study published on Wednesday shows that the blogs of the ten largest US newspapers attracted three times as many readers in December as in the previous year.  
The study by market research company Nielsen/NetRatings revealed that 15 percent of respondents in last year's US congressional elections obtained most of their information from the Internet. According to a report by SDA, digital online diaries, or blogs, are enjoying a particularly strong rise in popularity. The ten largest daily newspapers in the USA alone counted 3.8 million blog readers in 2006, compared with 1.2 million in 2005. However, anyone who fears that printed newspapers and other conventional media will now be replaced by the Internet can rest assured: For 69 percent of the 2,500 respondents, television is the most important source of information, 34 percent continue to rely on daily newspapers and 17 percent get their information from the radio.