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Gays, lesbians and blogs

Jack Kapica, May 1, 2008 at 4:44 PM EDT

 

I am nonplussed by a survey taken by Harris Interactive and Witeck-Combs Communications, which reported Monday that gays and lesbians read blogs more often than heterosexuals.

The study, using a statistically c redible sample of 2,733 U.S. adults, said that 51 per cent of gays and lesbians who use the Internet regularly read blogs, compared to just 36 per cent of heterosexuals.

This was shored up with similar results in more detailed questions: 27 per cent of gay and lesbian Web users posted a comment on a blog in the past month, in contrast with 13 per cent of heterosexuals; 21 per cent said they contributed to their own blogs over the previous month, while only 7 per cent of their straight counterparts did.

It wouldn't have occurred to me to divide blog readers this way, but then I'm not a marketer; I began to realize this survey is important for marketers because of the significant discrepancy in the behaviour of straight and gay people on the Web. If advertisers are trying to reach gays and lesbians, this survey tells them unequivocally they should look at blogs — almost 20 per cent of gays and lesbians reported feeling more “positive” about ads on blogs as opposed to 8 per cent of heterosexual adults.

Wes Combs, president of Witeck-Combs Communications, said in a statement released Monday that “studies consistently show that gays and lesbians are leaders in online usage, are very keen to find relevant and timely information, and feel more strongly about staying on top of latest trends.”

“Blogs are fast shaping the media landscape, and it is one medium that marketers and advertisers can't afford to ignore,” he said, “especially when it comes to reaching gay and lesbian influencers, voters and consumers.”

My initial response was to wonder whether there is any significant reason for gays and lesbians to outnumber straight blog readers; perhaps there is a gender-specific subject that appeals to gays and lesbians, in the way that tech blogs appeal to a largely straight male audience.

But the study suggests no special blog subject is responsible, just blogs in general. Gays and lesbians dominate pretty consistently across all subjects: 28 per cent of gay respondents read news and current-events blogs (compared to 19 per cent of heterosexuals), 26 per cent read entertainment and pop-culture blogs (11 per cent of straight people) and 23 per cent follow political blogs (14 per cent of straight people).

The pattern of behaviour spills over into other online activities, such as instant-messaging, with 25 per cent of gay adult men saying they send instant messages at least once a day, compared with 15 per cent of heterosexual adult men.

I won't dare speculate on the reasons for all this, except to say I am intrigued by it.

I can't wait to be enlightened.

  1. Straight Guy from United States writes: One rationale for the difference is that previous surveys have also found that gays and lesbians have much more disposable income and discretionary time than straights. That could translate to computers, internet access, as well as time to surf and post.

    We don't address this internet access issue directly, but a friend and I have started a blog, "Gay Guy / Straight Guy," which tries to bridge the gap in a humorous way. We still don't always "get" each other, and maybe never will. But it's interesting to see what we agree on, too.

    I will say that, in our case, I was the more tech-savvy and blog-aware, by far.

    Of course we can't track the orientation of our readers. Our comments, so far, come mostly from straight folks.

    The blog can be found at www.gayguystraightguy.com
  2. MG Stewart from Kanata, Canada writes: The theory put forth by Straight Guy (more disposable income) is a good one.

    Gays and lesbians have traditionally not been well represented in the mainstream media. I would suggest, therefore, that perhaps they are more accustomed to and open to non-traditional media, including blogs that aren't necessarily gay or lesbian specific.
  3. CD W from Canada writes: Market away, folks want or need a service, someone is able to provide it. Got to love the free market. The dollar does not care what colour your car is, or what type of dog you have. We all win by commerce.
  4. Brian Kearns from Ottawa, Canada writes: Gay culture is prolific online; with gay only social networking sites and resources that go way past facebook and myspace. Gays and Lesbians have been using the internet from day one for the simple fact you can be out online and connect with other gays and lesbians far more easily than you can offline. The internet is a safe and wide open social network for gays and lesbians in or out of the closet to communicate. I hope that answers the question.

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