Digital Families: More Ethnic, More Media Diversity

Nielsen released a new report examining media consumption among U.S. households that are becoming smaller and more ethnically diverse than ever before.

The emerging digital American family is not defined by any single dominant cultural, social, demographic or political point of view. According to the research firm, "The white, two-parent, "Leave It to Beaver" family unit of the 1950s has evolved into a multilayered, multicultural construct dominated by older, childless households." However, Nielsen splits American families into two basic groups: One consists of more educated and affluent households with lower divorce rates, where parents spend significant time with their children. The other includes more ethnic and unwed families with fewer kids and higher divorce rates, where parents struggle to find time to spend with children.

Looking more closely at media usage and preferences by demographic factors including income, ethnicity and age, here are some of the study highlights:

• High-income families view less TV but spend more time viewing with kids, using time-shifted media four times more often than low-income households.
• For the Hispanic community, mobile serves as a key source of connectivity.
• African-American media habits are TV- and mobile-centric.
• Asian-Americans have the largest appetite for online media, logging 80 hours on the Internet and viewing 3,600 Web pages -- 3.5 times more than any other ethnic group.