America Online Announces Top Teen Wired Cities In America.

America Online, Inc. announced the top 10 teen wired cities in America based on a national survey of more than 6,700 parents of teens and teens conducted by Digital Marketing Services, Inc. (DMS). The results are based on the amount of time that teens, ages 12-17, spend online on a weekly basis and also reveals what teens do while they’re online, including e-mail, homework, instant message, listen to music, research current events, play games and more.

According to the study, the top 10 teen wired cities in the U.S. are #1 Pittsburgh, #2 New York, #3 Cleveland, #4 San Diego, #5 Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, #6 Hartford and New Haven, #7 Los Angeles, #8 Detroit, #9 Philadelphia, and #10 Milwaukee. Teens, aged 12-17 years, living in the number one teen wired city – Pittsburgh – are online an average of 15.82 hours per week and teens living in the number 10 teen wired city – Milwaukee – are online an average of 12.85 hours per week.

“Teens today are the first generation to fully recognize and utilize the full power and capabilities of the Internet,” said Regina Lewis, AOL Online Advisor. “These survey findings reveal that teens are using the Internet in every facet of their lives – from communicating with friends and family, to doing homework and even getting the latest in news and current events. And, with the growing popularity of wireless devices, teens and the Internet will become even more inseparable.”

Communication, Education and Recreation Top Teen Online Activities List

The DMS survey also reveals that the Internet is increasingly becoming an integral and essential part of teens’ daily lives, spanning the full range of their everyday activities. Here is a snapshot of what teens are doing online:

Communication

The survey found that the Internet has, in many ways, become the primary communication tool for teens, surpassing even the telephone for some teenage groups. Eighty-one percent of teens between the ages of 12-17 use the Internet to e-mail friends or relatives while 70% use it for instant messaging, a convenient and fun way to send instant text messages both from ones’ computer and on the go via wireless devices. When you look at older teens, age 18-19 years, these statistics jump to 91% for e-mail, 83% for instant messaging. Fifty-six percent of teens aged 18 and 19 years prefer the Internet to the telephone.

According to the recently released AOL Roper ASW Youth Cyberstudy, the Internet has become such an essential communication resource that the majority of today’s youth (55%) would rather bring a computer with them to a deserted island over a telephone or television. The same survey shows that most teens agree that more people will know their e-mail address rather than their phone number within 10 years.

Education

In addition to communicating with friends and participating in online recreational activities, the DMS survey reveals that teens depend on the Internet as an educational resource, relying on online resources to complete school assignments and research news and current events. Fifty-eight percent of younger teens (12-17 years) consult online resources for guidance on their homework assignments while 61% of older teens (18-19 years) turn to the Internet for help completing their schoolwork. Additionally, more than a quarter (26%) of younger teens go online to access news and current events while almost two-thirds (61%) of older teens do the same.

Recreation

The study also demonstrated that teens turn to the Internet when they want some downtime from their busy lives. Fifty-five percent of younger teens between the ages of 12 and 17 years go online to listen and download digital music; this figure jumps to an impressive 65% for older teens aged 18 and 19 years. Playing games online is another fun distraction for teens; 70% of younger teens and 60% of older teens use the Internet to play games. Fifty-one percent of older teens rely on the Web when planning vacations and searching for travel information. Other online recreational activities that register with the teen audience include downloading the latest news and gossip on celebrities and music groups (40% for younger teens, 35% for older teens), participating in online chats (36% for younger teens, 46% for older teens) and accessing sports information (25% for younger teens, 19% for older teens).

Teens As Wireless Pioneers

As teens continue to rely more and more on the Internet for their everyday activities, they are also beginning to take advantage of wireless devices that allow them to manage their lives online, while on the go, anytime, anywhere. Twenty-five percent of parents surveyed indicated that their teens currently use cell phones with instant messaging and/or e-mail capability. When asked which wireless devices their teen would most like to own, 51% responded a cell phone with messaging capability.

Online Safety Tips for Parents

The fact that teens are spending more and more time online also means it is an increasingly important part of modern day parenting to monitor their child’s online activities. Ninety-one percent of parents interviewed say they talk to their teens about safe online behavior. Moms are more likely than Dads to talk to their teens (95% vs. 87%) about this topic. The survey also found that 93% of older teens report that they practice safe online behavior, such as not giving out personal information to people they meet online.

There are many practical tips parents can adopt to help ensure a safe online environment for the whole family. Tips like using parental control software, reminding teens not to give out personal information or their password online, telling them to never meet someone they’ve contacted online in person, establishing online time limits, engaging in parental supervision, and keeping the computer in a central location in the house – such as the kitchen or family room.