Not super surprising that the web is the newest hangout for teens. According to a study “Teens & Social Media” conducted by the Pew Internet & American Life Project “some 93% of teens use the internet, and more of them than ever are treating it as a venue for social interaction – a place where they can share creations, tell stories, and interact with others.” What is interesting, however, are the trends being reported on teens’ usage patterns online.

The use of social media – from blogging to online social networking to creation of all kinds of digital material – is central to many teenagers’ lives.

39% of of teens online between the ages of 12-17 share photos, videos, and stories online and approximately 30% either work on a webpage or blog for someone or have their own, up roughly 20% from 2004. The number of teen bloggers nearly doubled from 2004 to 2006 with girls dominating the blogospere at 35% versus 20% of online teen boys. This could be attributed to girls tending to be a little more communicative and expressive than boys. A whopping 55% have created a MySpace or Facebook profile and there is evidence to suggest a direct correlation between teens with social networking profiles and blogging. Many of these teens also tend to be bloggers, read blogs, and comment on blogs.

57% of online teens watch videos online but boys trump girls in watching and posting videos online. Although photos and videos are an important part of teens’ lives online, most reported restricting access to their photos and the majority report receiving comments on their photos and videos.

Communications patterns for teens are shifting for “multi-channel teens – those teens who use the internet, instant messaging, text messaging a cell phone, and social networking sites” to cell phones, IM apps, and social networks. And, compared to adults, teens are least likely to use email as a means of communicating, opting instead for texting, IM, and social networks to keep in touch with friends.

This data validates what we’ve all been seeing which is the growing popularity and demand for Web 2.0 phenomena such as user-generated content in the form of blogs, photos, and videos, and for social networking communities.