The Pew research centre's latest report is on the use of Twitter and reveals some interesting trends, not least how mainstream the social messaging site (let's forget that 'microblogging' nonsense) has become. Twitter is now used by 6% of the entire adult US population and particularly young adults, minorities and city dwellers.

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Aaron Smith, who co-wrote the report for Pew, told the San Jose Mercury News that the findings about use among minorities reinforce previous research, and reflect a young and social media-addicted demographic. "The findings... match really well with a lot of the other work we have done recently about how African-Americans and Latinos are very engaged in social media, and how they are very active in the mobile space," he said, going on to explain why use in rural areas is so much lower.

"What people are doing is using technology to maintain contact with their friends and family members. People are using technology not to withdraw from the world, but to maintain some contact with the people around them and the things they are interested in - even when they are pressed for time, and economically stressed."

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