Apparently there are still people who haven’t joined Facebook or Twitter or MySpace, and they’re not all necessarily century-old technophobes like my parents. The Washington Post published an article about social networking refuseniks, people in their 20s and early 30s who just refuse (refusenik = refuse + beatnik, get it?!) to join any of these digital communication websites. They truly are in the minority as a study showed about 85 percent of all Internet users between the ages of 18 and 34 visited Facebook, MySpace or Twitter in August.

Of course, these refuseniks cite reasons like “Oh, I like my privacy” or “I can focus on things I really care about,” but let’s face it, these kids miss out on a lot. To name a few, you can’t see embarrassing pictures from the pub crawl last weekend, you don’t get to know exactly which one of your friends is in the bathroom/work/bar at any given time and, most importantly, you don’t get invites to all the cool, ragin’ parties (and then you miss out on seeing the pictures of the parties you weren’t invited to…it’s a vicious cycle, really).

But maybe these kids do have the right idea. Perhaps, in the semi-words of one Janis Ian, [Facebook] is a life-ruiner; it ruins people’s lives. Sometimes Facebook gets too complicated, drama gets started over something trivial and people can break up. But where would we be without status updates and wall posts? It’s really just a toss-up.

-Kelly

Despite a Wall Street Journal article last week stating that younger demographics are not hugely active on Twitter, new data from comScore (via Mashable) suggests that younger users (specifically, ages 12-24) are now Twitter’s fastest-growing audience segment.  What are we supposed to believe?!

Mashable makes a great point, stating that unlike other social media sites, Twitter is actually “aging in reverse.”

-Maria

Nielsen’s recent study on the ages of Twitter users was big news last week (in fact, I believe “teens don’t tweet” was even on Twitter’s trending topic leaderboard at some point). The study found that the majority (64%) of Twitter users are between the ages of 25 and 54, which corresponds to anecdotal evidence. In fact, only 16% of Twitterers are under age 25 (including me!), contrary to popular belief. This information is important to keep in mind when evaluating whether a brand should establish a Twitter presence — is its target demographic even on Twitter?

—Alyssa

A new study suggests that only 22% of Millennials use Twitter. As a Millennial who does appreciate Twitter, I’d say that this is true, as most of the people I interact with on the microblogging site are older than me — the key demographic seems to be people in their late 20s and 30s.

I think this is because college students are so caught up in Facebook, and want to see what their friends who live down the hall are doing. However, once you enter the working world, you want your social network to expand beyond the people you already know from four years at college, and Twitter is a great place to connect with new contacts you might not have the chance to meet otherwise.

One more thing to note — take these survey results with a grain of salt, as the sample size of the study was only 200 consumers between the ages of 18-24.

—Alyssa

In honor of Mother’s Day this weekend (did you send your mom a card yet?), feast your eyes on the Top 10 Online Activities for Moms, a result of a study by the Marketing to Moms Coalition. Some activities that are strangely missing from the graph? “E-mailing offspring pictures of LOLcats,” “forwarding e-mail chain letters that have been circulating online since 1998” and “SuperPoking people on Facebook.” (Just kidding. Love you, moms!)

—Alyssa

Dear Kenny Mayne,

Yes, I will buy Grape Nuts the next time I go grocery shopping.  Why?  Because I, like you, am a real man who needs to get things done.

The Guy’s Manual, a new Web site from Grape Nuts, inspired me to get some extra fiber and rekindle my relationship with bacon-less breakfast.  The “instructional” webisodes give practical advise to men grappling with losing their hair or having to take a girlfriend’s poodle on a run.  ESPN great Kenny Mayne does a great job as narrator.

While the campaign does well to target men, who are the biggest consumers of Grape Nuts, the question remains if the campaign will reach (if not directly) women, who buy the majority of Grape Nuts.

-Tom

When I was flipping through the latest issue of Details on the train, something in the “Mavericks 2009” listicle made me do a double-take. The blurb about the founders of Twitter reads, “The microblog site may largely be the domain of tweens and teens.” Um, I’m pretty sure the kidlets are mainly chattering about the Jonas Brothers and Twilight on Facebook and MySpace. In fact, the Pew Internet & American Life Project recently found that the most avid microbloggers are between 25 and 34, with 18- to 24-year-olds coming in a close second. So, mainstream media, the next time you decide to write about “that new Twitter thing,” you might want to do some fact-checking.

—Alyssa

I’ve been keeping it old-school on the weekends, and by old-school, I actually mean reading the New York Times print edition via home delivery.  (I know, I’m sort of a traitor to Web 2.0, but there’s just something amazing about curling up with the actual, physical paper on Sunday afternoons.)

The weekend Times, however, is a beast, and it usually takes me well into the week to actually get to all the sections.  I was curled up with the Magazine on Tuesday and came across this interesting article about Facebook.

Peggy Orenstein discusses the concept of having a past.  Her generation is using their past as a tool and reason to connect on Facebook, but still are able to leave parts of their history back in time. She goes on to argue that those under 25 who have grown up with the social network have a past that is public, and it thus becomes part of our future.

It’s an interesting article and thought to ponder. I believe it will be interesting to see how this changes the way we grow into adulthood. (P.S. I hope you enjoyed the screengrab of the Facebook group highlighting the school where I spent my most awkward years.  Think braces and lots of Limited Too bellbottoms.)

-Andrea