Social networking is not just for the young: 27% of Americans age 50+ say they now use social media websites, with Facebook the most popular—used by 23% of adults age 50+—according to a survey from AARP.

Among surveyed Hispanics age 50+, 21% say they use social media websites and 13% use Facebook.

Most adults age 50+ who use social media sites are connected to family: 73% say they are connected (online) to relatives other than children and grandchildren, 62% are connected to their children, and 36% are connected to grandchildren.

Among Hispanics age 50+ who use social sites, 77% say they are connected to relatives other than children and grandchildren, 68% are connected to their children, and 38% are connected to their grandchildren.

Some 47% of adults age 50+ who use social media say they were introduced to social media by family members and 24% say they were introduced by friends.

Below, other findings from AARP's study, Social Media and Technology Use Among Adults 50+.

Internet as a News Source

Most adults 50+ (40%) prefer to get their news from print newspapers, 26% seek out a combination of print and online news sources, and 10% prefer online news exclusively—via newspaper and magazine websites.

Among Hispanic adults 50+, 36% prefer to receive their news from print newspapers, 10% get their news via a combination of print and online news sources, and 5% rely on online sources exclusively.

Among older adults who get their news online, 33% say they most often use cable news station websites and 33% prefer newspaper and magazine websites.

Among older Hispanics, however, 24% say they most often use cable news station websites and 31% prefer newspaper and magazine websites.

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General Internet, Technology Use

Nearly three-quarters (73%) of adults age 50+ say they access the Internet; 57%among them do so from a desktop computer, 26% use a laptop, 4% use a smartphone, and 4% use other mobile devices.
Other technology-related findings:

• 40% of adults age 50+ consider themselves extremely (17%) or very (23%) comfortable using the Internet. 
• 45% of Hispanic adults 50+ say they access the Internet.
• 21% of Hispanics age 55+ consider themselves extremely (6%) or very (15%) comfortable using the Internet.
• 83% of adults age 50+ say they have heard of the Apple iPad, and 2%among them own one.
• Among the adults age 50+ who have heard of the iPad, 11% say they would like to own one, primarily to browse the Web (77%), read online news sites (74%), share photos (67%), and read books (66%).

About the data: This study was conducted via telephone by GfK Customer Research for the AARP among a nationally representative sample of 1,360 adults age 50+ and among 503 Hispanic adults age 50+, May 12-17, 2010.