Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments
Search

News for nerds, stuff that matters

Slashdot Log In

Log In

Create Account  |  Retrieve Password

Over-50s Invade the Social Networking Scene

Posted by CowboyNeal on Fri Nov 02, 2007 03:47 AM
from the old-folks-have-friends-too dept.
The Internet Entertainment
An anonymous reader writes "The Telegraph newspaper reports that over-50s are invading sites like Facebook and MySpace in massive numbers. A recent study showed that nearly one third of Facebook users are aged between 35 and 54, and that this group also made up 41 percent of MySpace users. "Because the mind of an over-50 is likely superior to that of a drink-addled undergrad, at first there was uncertainty about whether older users would find the Facebook-led social-networking phenomena attractive." Looks like dad just turned up to the party."
+ -
story

Related Stories

Submission: Over-50s invade the social networking scene by Anonymous Coward
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.

Over-50s Invade the Social Networking Scene 50 Comments More /

 Full
 Abbreviated
 Hidden
More
Loading... please wait.

  • All this makes me think of is... (Score:4, Funny)

    by doyoulikeworms (1094003) on Friday November 02 2007, @03:49AM (#21208809)
    To Catch a Predator. [wikipedia.org]

  • over 50 or over 35 (Score:5, Informative)

    by mrvan (973822) on Friday November 02 2007, @03:52AM (#21208837)
    So are they 'over 50's' or are they 'between 35 and 54'? I know that from the perspective of a teenager it all classifies as "really old", but some of us make more subtle distinctions...

  • The question is (Score:2, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Will it take them less than 4 days to find the email addresses of old friends and then realise that the rest of the site is pointless crap, and that they can't remove their profiles?

    • Re: (Score:2, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward
      My question is, when will they change the name from "facebook" to "facelift"?
       
      CAPTCHA: ambled

      • My question is, when will they change the name from "facebook" to "facelift"?
        Maybe when you need one?
  • Headline: Over-50s Invade the Social Networking Scene
    Then: one third of Facebook users are aged between 35 and 54

    Gives some evidence that you may well feel like 50 if you are 35 (especially if you are looking for a job in Germany). Luckily, this does not apply to me, being well over 50 and having 'retired from reality' (as someone mentioned here).

    CC.

  • oh, dear (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Elise DiPace (1153487) on Friday November 02 2007, @04:06AM (#21208899)
    "Because the mind of an over-50 is likely superior to that of a drink-addled undergrad, at first there was uncertainty about whether older users would find the Facebook-led social-networking phenomena attractive."

    So the over-50's were never drink-addled undergrads? Does this mean I'm not going to make it to 50?

    • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

      by Silver Sloth (770927)
      Most of the over 50's I know - and that's quite a few as I'm 54 - are still drinking and smoking just as much as we used to in our undergrad days. I'd strongly disagree with the very ageist statment that my mind is 'superior' to a younger person's - Ok, I've been rund the block a few more times and have a better degree from the 'University of Life' but superior - I wouldn't be that smug. Maybe this is why I don't buy the Torygraph.
      • Anyone who is posting on Slashdot in their 20s has no life.

        Anyone who is posting on Slashdot in their 50s has had no life.

        • Re:oh, dear (Score:4, Funny)

          by zoomshorts (137587) on Friday November 02 2007, @05:19AM (#21209337)
          Actually we are living well and posting on Slashdot. WE have the time now.
          The rest of you have to go to school or WORK. Shudder. And a Beer and Slashdot,
          what could be better?

          Don't say Camming Nude, that is SOOO CUSEEME ! Circa 1995.

        • Anyone who is posting on Slashdot in their 20s has no life. Anyone who is posting on Slashdot in their 50s has had no life.
          Anyone in their 30s or 40s is raising kids / working too hard to have any life.

          It's quite sad really, but most people don't have a life.

        • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

          by russotto (537200)

          Anyone who is posting on Slashdot in their 50s has had no life.


          Your generalization misses the bitter and lonely divorced men in their 50s, who had a life and lost it.

          (Who, me? Not yet, anyway.)

  • The math's not wrong! (Score:3, Interesting)

    by xzaph (1157805) on Friday November 02 2007, @04:11AM (#21208929)
    Apparently, the title was just based off the fact that the age range must have been in hexadecimal. Right? Yeah...

  • A dream come true... (Score:5, Funny)

    by physicsphairy (720718) on Friday November 02 2007, @04:21AM (#21209003) Homepage
    Previously, my desires to flame the dean of students, trick him into clicking a goatse link, and infect his computer with gay porn had all been sadly unfulfilled due to his troglodytic eschewing of modern technology.

    But now that the elder generation is seeking parity with the younger, we can at last unveil the full weaponry of the internet.

  • Definitivly confirmed as true. (Score:5, Funny)

    by HybridJeff (717521) on Friday November 02 2007, @04:24AM (#21209013) Homepage
    Coincidentally my Dad just signed up for Facebook last week (he's 58). So having noted that, I can now definitively say, without having actually read the article (because, really who does that?) and having examined exactly one piece of anecdotal evidence: the over 50 crown is definitely joining social networking sites in droves.

  • Recommendation, or condemnation? (Score:5, Insightful)

    by pla (258480) on Friday November 02 2007, @04:24AM (#21209019) Journal
    Because the mind of an over-50 is likely superior to that of a drink-addled undergrad, at first there was uncertainty about whether older users would find the Facebook-led social-networking phenomena attractive.

    I've passed my [drink]-addled college years and haven't passed 50 yet, but I have to say, FP author, you've managed to write a summary that insults pretty much everybody! Kudos!

    That said, clearly the presense of these older folks on the ego-aggregator networks demonstrates that some of them still do have drink-addled minds.



    A recent study showed that nearly one third of Facebook users are aged between 35 and 54

    Statistics abuse time - That also means that a third of facebook users have ages between 35 and 84! Quick, re-write the FP title, the Octogenarian Invasion has begun!

  • Great I'm in that demographic now (Score:3, Funny)

    by MrCopilot (871878) on Friday November 02 2007, @04:47AM (#21209161) Homepage Journal
    Just turned 35 and now I'm lumped in with my dad (also on myspace along with my son).

    Get off my Lawn!

  • "get off my lawn" via a facebook post?

  • Facebook is dead. (Score:3, Funny)

    by eniac42 (1144799) on Friday November 02 2007, @04:48AM (#21209165) Journal
    Welcome to GetOffMyLawnBook.com!

  • Embarressing parents (Score:3, Funny)

    by wodon (563966) on Friday November 02 2007, @05:00AM (#21209239)
    How long before we start seeing our parents posting embarrassing messages on our walls though?

    "Hey son, those are some rad tunes on your interblog site! What's that? It's got a good beat!"

    Thank god they can't dance online. (obligatory Mary Whitehouse experience reference)

    In fact my mother just set up a facebook page, the horror.

    • Or you might find a note on your facebook page, telling you in no uncertain terms that Billy's mom doesn't want you to hang out on her son's page.

    • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

      by Demerara (256642)
      I think it was Danny Baker, the UK DJ/talk radio/TV host who said that "we are the first generation who are hipper than our children". Those of us who lived through punk and new wave (70's and early 80's) in particular saw how "youf" culture was slowly but inevitably swallowed up by the brand giants.

      The vast majority of young people are hoodwinked into buying stuff and thinking it and themselves cool/hip/trendy when they're simply meeting the projections of the corporate marketing suits.

      Naturally, there's a
  • What about drink-addled over-50 year olds?
  • Old people can be serious drunks at parties and do wild, stupid, and crazy things. They can be needy, impulsive, and wanting popularity. The only difference between them and me is that I'm cool and they're not!.. and also i don't have kids or a mortgage or any real responsibilities other than myself.

  • My Demographic (Score:5, Funny)

    by hyades1 (1149581) <hyades1@hotmail.com> on Friday November 02 2007, @05:29AM (#21209389)
    Just because you're older doesn't mean you're a techno-moron. I'm in that demographic, and I even hang out with the Slashdot crowd once in a while and I, ah, what was the question? Why am I downstairs?

  • Not surprising (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Edgyboy (1157885) on Friday November 02 2007, @05:42AM (#21209461) Homepage
    To me, this isn't surprising. .
    .
    Older people, like everyone else, have a need for social interaction. But as they grow older, they are less and less willing to go out and/or meet up in the traditional sense - bars, restaurants, etc. Soc. network are ideal for them - they are easy to use and through them, the older crowd can fulfill their basic human need without having to leave their home.

    Anyway, if Facebook make just one mother stop complaining to her grown up children about not visiting - we should all rejoice!
  • Oh great!

    I thought the whole point of "Social Networking" was to be socialiable??!!

    One of the great aspects of the Internet was anyone could take part, no matter your race, religion, colour or *age* everyone is equal behind the keyboard.

    After reading some of the negative comments on this thread it saddens me there are people who obviously find people of "a certain age" offensive.

    Me? I am 37 years old and have no hang-ups or insecurites about my age at all (I never did)!

    As this thread continues I am hoping m

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by MollyB (162595) *
      I was over fifty when I got my account on Slashdot, late last century. I've noticed a Peanut Gallery of snotty young pukes that are present in almost every discussion. So what? In spite of that, there is wheat in the chaff, but it takes patience to find it. I hope your comment:

      As this thread continues I am hoping many more positive posts will outweigh the negative comments I have seen so far otherwise I will have to re-consider participating in Slashdot.

      You, at 37, seem wise beyond your years, and I hope for the sake of like-minded Slashdotters that you stick around. Slashdot is the closest thing to social networking I'd ever consider. Who wants to hang around a bunch of self-absorb

    • I thought the whole point of "Social Networking" was to be socialiable??!!

      No, the point of "Social Networking" is to find people JUST LIKE YOU, only in a much larger area than you can cover with traditional networking.

      One of the great aspects of the Internet was anyone could take part, no matter your race, religion, colour or *age* everyone is equal behind the keyboard.

      That was just Usenet (before it was dominated by binaries).

  • First of all... (Score:4, Funny)

    by voss (52565) on Friday November 02 2007, @06:14AM (#21209619)
    A 35 year old is not a baby boomer Anyone born in the 68-82 is generation X.

    Which includes
    Gwen Stefani
    Cameron Diaz
    Drew Barrymore

    This is not your moms generation this is your younger hot stepmoms generation ;-)

  • I use it for business (Score:4, Interesting)

    by gelfling (6534) on Friday November 02 2007, @07:02AM (#21209913) Homepage Journal
    I figure that's where all my customers are hanging out so why not be there. It has nothing to do with my social activity and everything to do with their social activity.

    • Re:I wish the Baby Boomers would just die (Score:5, Insightful)

      by mangu (126918) on Friday November 02 2007, @04:25AM (#21209023)
      I really can't think of anything that the Baby Boomer's have gained control of that they have left better than they found it.


      The first two answers that came to my mind: the computer industry and the Cold War.

      • I'll give you two contra-answers: Political Correctness and the current Presidency.

        • Re:I wish the Baby Boomers would just die (Score:5, Insightful)

          by CoonAss56 (927862) on Friday November 02 2007, @05:07AM (#21209275) Homepage
          As a over 50 guy, I guess we will have to re-educate you as to how you received life. Since you are posting here you are probably a product-(as are most of the smart-assed comments here) of a boomer. We stopped the Vietnam War, gave women and minorities the same rights as everyone else, won the space race, gave you the ability to even post your snarky comments due to the fact that we pushed technology forward. These are just a few of the many things we have contributed to the greater good. Now please tell me what your chicken-shit generation have done except sit back on your ass and whine about how shitty every thing is. The difference between us and you is when we seen something that was wrong we DID something about it!

          • gave women and minorities the same rights as everyone else
            May I suggest some light reading, of someone of your generation [thepiratebay.org].

          • Re:I wish the Baby Boomers would just die (Score:5, Insightful)

            by porcupine8 (816071) on Friday November 02 2007, @08:44AM (#21210839) Journal
            While I don't want to claim that your generation has done nothing useful, I take issue with a few of your claims:

            gave women and minorities the same rights as everyone else - You definitely get partial credit for this. However... Rosa Parks was NOT a baby boomer. Martin Luther King? NOT a baby boomer. The suffragettes? NOT baby boomers. Heck, Mary Tyler Moore? NOT a baby boomer! You guys helped, but you were only continuing the momentum started by previous generations.

            won the space race - O RLY? Baby boomers born between 1942-1962 (or so, ish) were responsible for the moon landing in 1969? It was a bunch of 7-27 year olds who pulled that off?

            I think you may be confusing "Thing that we did" with "thing that I happen to remember that happened before you were born." I'll give you some credit for Vietnam, and sure, you get credit for a lot of great technology in the 80s and 90s. But by the early 90s, Gen Xers were also participating in the tech boom (Gen Xers include: Jeff Bezos, Michael Dell, Larry Page, Sergei Brin, Linus Torvalds, Tom Anderson).

            Also, if women's lib and civil rights for minorities defined your generation, I would guess that gay rights is the parallel movement that would define Gen X in many of the same ways.

              • Re:I wish the Baby Boomers would just die (Score:4, Informative)

                by porcupine8 (816071) on Friday November 02 2007, @08:53AM (#21210935) Journal
                You tell me that we have the biggest slice of the pie-(and maybe we do) but we worked for it at those menial jobs also. Your generation seems to think that they should go right to the top with little on no work experience or life experience. And being young gives you no more insight and clear thinking. Remember we were ALL young once and thought the exact same things, nothing new there, Sparky.

                A quote from the Wikipedia Generation X page:

                According to the US Census Bureau, from 1993 to 2006, males grossed less than their fathers (defined as the cohort 30-years prior, about the average age of fatherhood) at the same age, using combined real median income and based on the following criteria:[6]

                * At ages 25-34, those born from about 1965-1981
                * At ages 30-39, those born from about 1963-1976
                * At ages 25-39, those born from about 1964-1981

                It's been widely reported that Gen X is the first generation that will not surpass its parents' standard of living.

              • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

                by crotherm (160925)

                Nicely done... While not 50 yet, I don't have many years left.

                Today's college aged folks are way too distracted by trivial stuff to bother to put together massive protests against Bush & Co. The protests in the 60's had a lot to do with getting out of Vietnam. But where those same protesters failed was in blaming the troops for evils done over seas.
    • Even IF we are stoned or drunk, WE grew up on what younger people take for granted.
      We multitask well. I am currently enjoying retirement, moderating 2 video chat rooms,
      Answering email, drinking a brew, posting on Slashdot and instant messageing to 3 people
      at this very momment.

      Also I am intermittently loading the dishwasher between sentences.

    • Can you please e-mail her and tell her to hop off because she's ruining her son's life? thx
      On a slightly more serious note, it's sad how some people seem to think that their parents exist solely for their own benefit. I think most people will at at times be embarrassed by their parents. However one often sees someone basically demanding that their parent change his or her lifestyle to suit their child's insecurities, sense of propriety, feelings, etc, etc. Often the child is a fully fledged adult at the time.

      It seems to be a general rule in society that parents must sacrifice themselves on an altar for their children. It seems that becoming anything less than a completely devoted man servant to your offspring is a moral wrong. I'm of the opinion that becoming a parent does not oblige you to devote 100% of your (free) time to your children, and that telling your clinging offspring every now and again to push off because you're busy with your own life, will be a benefit to them in the long run.

      All that said, if my parents ever do get a social networking account, I will publicly disown them.
      • 1. I come from the opposite angle. Mom... well, make no mistake, she loved us sincerely, but... entirely too much, you know? It took some almost violent verbal clashes to get her to just leave me alone and live her own life. That started when I was around 30 years old, and continued for some 5 years, give or take.

        As far as I can tell, she's still not over it, but has learned to control herself by now.

        Her first conclusion was that someone's obviously manipulating me and my brother against her, when I too sta

    • Lets kill em all at 50 :-)


      We would have drown you all at birth, but we need someone to serve us our food.

All trademarks and copyrights on this page are owned by their respective owners. Comments are owned by the Poster. The Rest © 1997-2009 Geeknet, Inc.