Web Site Publisher Points to Role of Internet in Redefining America and Aging
The Internet will play an increasingly important role in shaping the definition of successful aging in the United States.
St. Louis, MO (PRWEB) January 13, 2006
When Daniel Hines launched www. TodaysSeniorsNetwork. com as one of the first web sites to utilize the Internet as an informational source for America’s seniors, it seemed like a novel idea, but no one could imagine the impact it and the World Wide Web would have on shaping a new definition of aging in the United States.
Now, six years later, the site has grown to include more than 1,000 articles on a number of issues affecting America’s seniors. www. TodaysSeniorsNetwork. com also attracts more than one million visitors and two million page views.
But, as the first baby boomers turn 60 in 2006, Hines is predicting an even greater role not only for his own site, but for the use of the Internet totally by an aging America.
“The implications of this are immense for life styles, politics, medical care and a new definition of aging and the role of an aging population in America,” Hines says.
“Whereas the older elderly population had little association with computers and the Internet, the Baby Boomers are highly familiar—and comfortable with—the Internet as a part of their daily lives,” Hines continues.
Hines points out that Boomers, defined as those born between 1946 and 1964, represent the largest demographic group in the U. S. at over 77 million strong, or about 27 percent of the population, according to the US Census Bureau.
An example of the reach of the Internet is exemplified by www. TodaysSeniorsNetwork. com which covers subjects of health, fitness, travel, veterans, aging, caregiving, prescription drugs, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, relationships, jobs and contributions to the community, technology in aging and finances—all from the perspective of an aging America.
“The fact is that the so-called ‘seniors’ market’ is not a monolithic bloc,” Hines says. “This has led to us having dozens of subtopics and additional stories in a number of more distinctly defined areas of interest.”
He points out, for example, that many of the sections within www. TodaysSeniorsNetwork. com are as comprehensive as many web sites supposedly devoted to a particular issue.
“Our goal has been to become a major source for the totality of aging in America’”Hines says. “We have been successful, but recognize that major opportunities and challenges lie ahead.
“Living in an Aging America was the subject of a recent seminar for media conducted by The Century Foundation, which had as a goal making media increasingly aware of the impact that a growing number of older persons will have on our society.
“We believe that this aging population can be empowered through the Internet by becoming increasingly informed on the impact of issues over a broad spectrum that affect them.”
He says a major emphasis will be the ingredients of successful aging that will enhance the well-being of an aging population—fitness, health care, delivery of medical services, relationships, financial planning and continuing to work or live in a fashion that contributes to defining a new type of senior—one for whom aging is an enjoyable, important process of a successful life.
“I am confident that this century will witness the emergence of a better informed, healthier, happier older population than any time before,” Hines says. “The Internet will make a major contribution to attaining this goal.”
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