Europeans still prefer TV and Newspapers to the Web, finds Cultural Survey

An EU study indicates that while almost all Europeans watch television and about half frequently read a newspaper, only 35% use the Internet. A Eurobarometer report describing the cultural activities of Europeans finds that 14% use the internet several times a week and 9% use it every day.

The Swedish use the internet most (with 67% going online regularly), followed by the Danes, the Dutch and the Finns (at 51%).

More than half of those who use the internet do so to exchange emails with family and friends, while 42% use it to find information on a specific product, and 40% use it for work.

This study was carried out during August and September 2001 among 16 162 people. All the people that participated in this study are European Union nationals, aged 15 years and over, and live in a Member State of the European Union.

Further findings include:
- Almost half of Europeans (46%) read newspapers between five and seven times a week. This proportion is as high as 78% in Finland and Sweden. The countries with the lowest proportions of newspaper readers are Greece (20%), Spain (25%) and Portugal (25%).
- More than 60% of Europeans read magazines at least once a month. About one third read magazines once a week or more frequently, and another quarter read them between one and three times a month. On the other hand, almost 20% never read magazines.
- The cinema is the most popular European cultural activity.
- The Finns make the most frequent visits to the library.
- Taking photographs and shooting amateur films are the most popular artistic activities in the European Union (29% of the population), especially in Sweden (60%) and the Netherlands (47%). Other artistic activities include dancing (22%), singing (20%), writing and activities like sculpture, painting, drawing, etc. (15%).
- Over half of Europeans do not use a computer.

Associated Link: Further results of the EU cultural pursuits survey

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