The digital divide in internet use between Latinos and whites is now at its narrowest point since 2009 as immigrant Latinos and Spanish-dominant Latinos make big strides in going online, according to newly released results from Pew Research Center’s “2015 National Survey of Latinos.”
The report points out that while Latinos have lagged other groups in accessing the internet and having broadband at home, they have been among the most likely to own a smartphone, to live in a household without a landline phone where only a cell is available and to access the internet for a mobile device.
The research shows that since 2009, the share of Latino adults who report using the internet increased 20 percentage points, up from 64 percent then to 84 percent in 2015. Over the same period, internet use among whites grew too, though at a slower rate, moving from 80 percent to 89 percent. Pew points out that as a result, the gap in internet use between Latinos and whites declined from 16 percentage points in 2009 to 5 percentage points in 2015.
Big gains in internet use made by immigrant Hispanics and Spanish-dominant Hispanics reportedly have been the main drivers in closing this gap. Both groups have long had among the lowest internet use rates among Hispanics, Pew says – and that is still the case today.
“Even so, between 2009 and 2015, the share of immigrant Hispanics who use the internet grew from 51 percent to 78 percent, “ Pew Research Center reports in a statement. “And over the same period, the share of Spanish-dominant Hispanics who use the internet about doubled, from 36 percent to 74 percent. As a result, the digital divide among Hispanics has also diminished.”
