Who needs sex when you have MySpace?
An eye-opening new study by ad agency JWT found 20 percent of Americans are giving up friends and yes, even sex, to spend more time online.
“People told us how anxious, isolated and bored they felt when they are forced offline,” said Ann Mack, director of trend spotting at JWT. “I don’t suppose their partners are too pleased about it.”
We’re so committed to staying wired, nearly a third of us – 28 percent – admit to cutting back on activities such as watching a football game with friends, so they can blog about it online.
If the cyber-social feel lonely, there’s always IM-ing, social-networking sites, and even live Webcam chats to see what those friends we used to have are up to.
“It is taking away from offline activities, among them sex, socializing face-to-face, watching TV and reading newspapers and magazines,” said Mack.
JWT conducted the survey online, of course, asking 1,011 adults about their dependency on the Internet and other wired gadgets such as cellphones and BlackBerrys.
The study found one of the biggest lures in cyberspace for under-35s are social-networking sites like MySpace and Facebook.