• by Wendy Davis  @wendyndavis, May 30, 2006

Creating online content is no longer the province of a handful of early adopters. Instead, it's become a mainstream activity, spurred largely by the increased availability of broadband connections, according to a new report by the Pew Internet & American Life Project.

As of last December, 35 percent of Americans had posted to a blog, created a Web page, shared online photos, or otherwise generated content. That proportion is more than double the 16 percent that had posted any content to the Web in January 2002, when Pew first researched the topic.

"User-generated content is no longer just for the 'broadband elite,' stated the report, titled "Home Broadband Adoption: 2006." Pew also reported that the mainstreaming of content creation has been accompanied by the surge in home broadband use, from about 10 percent of Americans four years ago to more than 40 percent today. (See related OnlineMediaDaily story.)

Men appear to be slightly more likely to create content than women, with 37 percent of male Web users reporting that they posted stories, videos, pictures, or other content online, compared to 32 percent of women.

Young Americans also were more likely than their older counterparts to create content. Forty-three percent of those between the ages of 18 and 29 have created original content, compared to 36 percent of those between 30 and 49, 29 percent of those between 50 and 64, and 18 percent of those older than 65.