Technorati released its annual study “State of the Blogosphere 2008”, seperated into five consecutive daily segments, according to the company Web site. The first one, titled “Who are the Bloggers?”, was released Monday, which unveils trends of blogging and bloggers.

According to the study, blogosphere has been growing in both size and influence, and the lines between a blog and a mainstream media is becoming less clear. For example, 95 percent of the top 100 U.S. newspapers now have reporter blogs.

The study listed data from different research companies. These figures vary, but all show that blogging has become a global trend:

• According to comScore MediaMetrix in August 2008, there are 77.7 million unique blog readers in the U.S.

• eMarketer reported in May 2008 that 94.1 million U.S. online users read blogs in 2007, representing half of the online population, and 22.6 millions of them blog themselves.

• Universal McCann noted in March 2008 that 184 million people worldwide, or 77 percent of active online users, have started a blog, while 26.4 million of them are from U.S. In addition, 346 million people worldwide read blogs, while 60.3 million of whom come from the States.

As of June 2008, Technorati tracked blogs in 81 languages. This annual study surveyed over 1.2 million bloggers who have registered with the company, and got responses from 66 countries across six continents.

Profile of Global Bloggers

According to Technorati, two-third of bloggers worldwide are male, and half of them are between 18 and 34. They tend to be more affluent and higher educated than the general population. 70 percent have college degrees, four out of ten have a household income over $75,000 annually, while one-fourth have more than $100,000.

In terms of geographic distribution, nearly half (48 percent) of the blogger come from North America, while over one-fourth (27 percent) from Europe. Bloggers from Asia accounted for 13 percent, while those from South America, Australia and Africa are still niche.

Profile of U.S. Bloggers

Technorati found that U.S. bloggers are skewed to male, single, and full-time employed, compared to the general Internet population.

One-third of U.S. bloggers are between 25 and 34, while 20 percent are self-employed. About 75 percent have college degrees, and 42 percent even go to graduate school. Moreover, more than half of them have an annual household income over $75,000, Technorati reported.

The Types of Bloggers

Technorati categorised bloggers into three types: personal, professional and corporate. Definitions are given as follows:

• Personal: blog about topics of personal interest not associated with work

• Professional: blog about the industry and profession but not in an official capacity for the company

• Corporate: blog for the company in an official capacity

Based on the survey, personal bloggers are the most popular, accounting for about four out of five. Professional bloggers make up about half, while 12 percent are corporate bloggers.

Technorati noted that these three groups are not mutually exclusive, since over half of professional and corporate bloggers also blog about their personal interests.

Blogging: not a new phenomenon

According to the study, blogging is not a new trick for most of the bloggers. Half of the respondents said they have at least two blogs, and 59 percent have been blogging for more than two years.

Experienced bloggers on average contribute to four blogs, and the average blogging tenure is three years, according to Technorati.

The complete study can be found here.

For a previous story on this report, visit our partner site, editorsweblog.org