PRESS RELEASE
Political Blog Visitors Skew Older, Wealthier, More Male than Overall U.S. Internet Population
RESTON, VA, October 22, 2008 – comScore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released a study of visitation to political blogs and news sites during the 2008 presidential election season, which showed strong gains at most sites compared to year ago. HuffingtonPost.com led among a group of selected stand-alone political blogs and news sites with 4.5 million visitors in September, up 472 percent versus year ago, while Politico.com attracted 2.4 million visitors (up 344 percent) and DrudgeReport.com saw 2.1 million visitors (up 70 percent).
“With each new election cycle, the Internet is playing a more significant role in shaping the stories of the day that are so crucial in formulating public opinion on issues and candidates,” said Andrew Lipsman, senior analyst at comScore. “That most mainstream news outlets now have their own political blogs is a testament to their increasing reach and influence. However, several independent blogs unaffiliated with larger media outlets paved the way in this space and are really beginning to enter the mainstream public consciousness with this current election cycle.”
Political Blog Visitors Skew Older, Wealthier, More Male than Overall U.S. Internet Population
RESTON, VA, October 22, 2008 – comScore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released a study of visitation to political blogs and news sites during the 2008 presidential election season, which showed strong gains at most sites compared to year ago. HuffingtonPost.com led among a group of selected stand-alone political blogs and news sites with 4.5 million visitors in September, up 472 percent versus year ago, while Politico.com attracted 2.4 million visitors (up 344 percent) and DrudgeReport.com saw 2.1 million visitors (up 70 percent).
“With each new election cycle, the Internet is playing a more significant role in shaping the stories of the day that are so crucial in formulating public opinion on issues and candidates,” said Andrew Lipsman, senior analyst at comScore. “That most mainstream news outlets now have their own political blogs is a testament to their increasing reach and influence. However, several independent blogs unaffiliated with larger media outlets paved the way in this space and are really beginning to enter the mainstream public consciousness with this current election cycle.”
Selected Stand-Alone* Political Blogs & News Sites
September 2008 vs. September 2007
Total U.S. – Home/Work/University Locations
Source: comScore Media Metrix
Total Unique Visitors (000)
Sep-2007
Sep-2008
% Change
Total Internet : Total Audience
181,858
189,468
4
181,858
189,468
4
HUFFINGTONPOST.COM
792
4,545
474
POLITICO.COM
532
2,362
344
DRUDGEREPORT.COM
1,215
2,059
70
REALCLEARPOLITICS.COM
192
1,129
489
FREEREPUBLIC.COM
1,022
987
-3
Capitol Advantage
794
959
21
DAILYKOS.COM
192
923
381
TOWNHALL.COM
407
884
117
NEWSBUSTERS.ORG
113
732
547
WORLDNETDAILY.COM
411
636
55
TALKINGPOINTSMEMO.COM
32
458
1,321
MICHELLEMALKIN.COM
103
247
140
REDSTATE.COM
38
235
514
CROOKSANDLIARS.COM
122
218
79
RAWSTORY.COM
219
212
-3
POLLSTER.COM
N/A
194
N/A
MEDIAMATTERS.ORG
145
178
23
FIVETHIRTYEIGHT.COM
N/A
169
N/A
CQPOLITICS.COM
N/A
139
N/A
AMERICABLOG.COM
N/A
104
N/A
*Stand-alone refers to blogs unaffiliated with larger news properties, such as the New York Times Caucus Blog or Time’s“The Page”.
Some additional findings include:
· September represented the single biggest month on record for both HuffingtonPost.com and Politico.com since their respective launches.
· Several sites dedicated to political poll-watching achieved notable gains. RealClearPolitics.com, which tracks composites of polls by state, attracted 1.1 million visitors in September, up 489 percent versus year ago. Two other polling-oriented sites, Pollster.com with 194,000 visitors and FiveThirtyEight.com with 169,000 visitors, also saw notable traffic in September.
· The top conservative leaning blog, FreeRepublic.com, actually saw marginal declines versus year ago, though it still attracted nearly 1 million visitors in September. Other conservative blogs, such as Newsbusters.org (up 547 percent to 732,000 visitors), WorldNetDaily.com (up 55 percent to 636,000 visitors) and MichelleMalkin.com (up 140 percent to 247,000 visitors) saw strong gains.
Political Blog Visitors Skew Older and Wealthier Than Average Americans
Looking at the demographic profiles for the top three sites, HuffingtonPost.com, Politico.com and DrudgeReport.com, one can conclude that visitors to these sites tend to be older, wealthier, and more likely to be male than the average U.S. Internet user.
Of the three sites, Politico.com skewed the oldest with 23 percent of its visitors age 55 and older, while DrudgeReport.com skewed wealthiest, with 40 percent of its visitors earning at least $100,000 a year, and had the highest concentration of males at 57 percent. HuffingtonPost.com, the site with the largest audience, was the most similar of the three when compared to the overall U.S. Internet audience.
· September represented the single biggest month on record for both HuffingtonPost.com and Politico.com since their respective launches.
· Several sites dedicated to political poll-watching achieved notable gains. RealClearPolitics.com, which tracks composites of polls by state, attracted 1.1 million visitors in September, up 489 percent versus year ago. Two other polling-oriented sites, Pollster.com with 194,000 visitors and FiveThirtyEight.com with 169,000 visitors, also saw notable traffic in September.
· The top conservative leaning blog, FreeRepublic.com, actually saw marginal declines versus year ago, though it still attracted nearly 1 million visitors in September. Other conservative blogs, such as Newsbusters.org (up 547 percent to 732,000 visitors), WorldNetDaily.com (up 55 percent to 636,000 visitors) and MichelleMalkin.com (up 140 percent to 247,000 visitors) saw strong gains.
Political Blog Visitors Skew Older and Wealthier Than Average Americans
Looking at the demographic profiles for the top three sites, HuffingtonPost.com, Politico.com and DrudgeReport.com, one can conclude that visitors to these sites tend to be older, wealthier, and more likely to be male than the average U.S. Internet user.
Of the three sites, Politico.com skewed the oldest with 23 percent of its visitors age 55 and older, while DrudgeReport.com skewed wealthiest, with 40 percent of its visitors earning at least $100,000 a year, and had the highest concentration of males at 57 percent. HuffingtonPost.com, the site with the largest audience, was the most similar of the three when compared to the overall U.S. Internet audience.
Demographic Profile of Visitors to Top 3 Political Blogs & News Sites
September 2008
Total U.S. – Home/Work/University Locations
Source: comScore Media Metrix
% Composition of Unique Visitors
Total U.S. Internet
Huffington Post
Politico
Drudge Report
Total Audience
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
Persons - Age
Persons: 12-17
10.5
5.4
3.6
2.9
Persons: 18-24
12.0
9.0
6.5
7.1
Persons: 25-34
15.4
15.6
14.9
15.1
Persons: 35-44
18.6
25.3
26.5
24.7
Persons: 45-54
17.5
20.7
19.7
23.3
Persons: 55-64
10.7
11.5
13.8
11.5
Persons: 65+
5.9
7.1
9.5
9.5
Persons: 12-17
10.5
5.4
3.6
2.9
Persons: 18-24
12.0
9.0
6.5
7.1
Persons: 25-34
15.4
15.6
14.9
15.1
Persons: 35-44
18.6
25.3
26.5
24.7
Persons: 45-54
17.5
20.7
19.7
23.3
Persons: 55-64
10.7
11.5
13.8
11.5
Persons: 65+
5.9
7.1
9.5
9.5
Gender
Male
49.8
54.3
54.4
56.7
Female
50.2
45.7
45.6
43.3
Male
49.8
54.3
54.4
56.7
Female
50.2
45.7
45.6
43.3
Household Income (US)
Under $25K
10.0
5.4
3.6
2.2
$25,000 - 39,999
9.6
8.2
6.7
5.1
$40,000 - 59,999
24.8
20.2
19.4
19.2
$60,000 - 74,999
12.4
13.1
10.7
8.3
$75,000 - 99,999
17.4
19.8
26.9
25.0
$100,000 or more
25.7
33.4
32.6
40.2
Under $25K
10.0
5.4
3.6
2.2
$25,000 - 39,999
9.6
8.2
6.7
5.1
$40,000 - 59,999
24.8
20.2
19.4
19.2
$60,000 - 74,999
12.4
13.1
10.7
8.3
$75,000 - 99,999
17.4
19.8
26.9
25.0
$100,000 or more
25.7
33.4
32.6
40.2
comScore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR) is a global leader in measuring the digital world and preferred source of digital marketing intelligence. For more information, please visit www.comscore.com/boilerplate.
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