• by September 25, 2000

You've heard it at every media conference, seminar and roundtable - "don't sink your entire media budget into one medium." That piece of advice is especially valuable when it comes to the Internet. Why? Because currently about half of all American adults don't even have Internet access.

Is that likely to change any time soon? Not according to a survey released Thursday by The Pew Internet & American Life Project, which says that Internet usage growth has hit a brick wall. According to the report, of those currently without Internet access, 57% said they have no plans to go online. That number, combined with those who don't have Internet access - about 94 million - suggests that "the booming growth of the American Internet population in the past few years will slow," the survey says. The report also states that 38% of Americans - 70 million - don't use a computer at all.

Fifty-two percent of those who say they will never go online say they consider the Internet hard to use, too expensive and "dangerous" in some fashion. Only 19% of the "Nevers" - a demographic group that is predominately female and white - felt they were missing something by not being online.

Conversely, 41% of those currently offline were a bit more optimistic. This group, labeled the "Eagers," felt they were indeed missing something by not being online; they were less intimidated by technology and most intrigued by the web's possibilities. The group, however, did say that access was too expensive and that the Net was "dangerous," which "might explain why they have not yet taken the plunge" into the online world, the survey says.

The survey says such findings shouldn't be surprising given that the largest number of those not online are senior citizens, minorities and those with less education "that tend to be more suspicious and more concerned about their privacy than Americans overall."