On December 4th, MMTC Staff Counsel and Chief of Staff Dorrissa Griffin joined a panel held by the Multicultural Media Caucus and Nielsen, “Forging the Future: Trendsetting Digital Adopters, Public Policy & Social Change,” where the panel discussed Nielsen’s latest findings in its report, “From Consumers to Creators: The Digital Lives of Black Consumers.”
Reta Jo Lewis, Director of Congressional Affairs and a Senior Fellow at the German Marshall Fund, served as moderator, and other panelists included Cheryl Grace, SVP, U.S. Strategic Community Alliances and Consumer Engagement at Nielsen; Francella Ochillo, Vice President of Policy and General Counsel at the National Hispanic Media Coalition; Orchid Richardson, Vice President and Managing Director at Data Center of Excellence; and John Yang, President and Executive Director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice - AAJC.
Grace opened the discussion with a presentation on Nielsen’s latest findings on the digital consumption and purchasing power of African American consumers and overall insights from Nielsen Diverse Intelligence Series reports. The panel focused on the “digital” aspect of the behavior of multicultural consumers, with panelists showcasing and discussing the importance of understanding consumer behaviors in diverse communities so that policymakers can make informed decisions.
Key finding’s from Nielsen’s report include:
- 90% of African Americans live in a household that owns a smartphone and have a higher weekly reach for social networking on a smartphone (75%), as well as watching video on a smartphone (66%) and audio streaming on a smartphone (45%).
- 19 million (28%) of Twitter’s 67 million users are African American and 9.3 million (or 20% of all African Americans) are on or self-identify using Black Twitter.
- African Americans 18+ are increasingly tuning into podcasts, with 70% growth in engagement from 2014 to 2017 (from 2.12 million to 3.60 million).
- African Americans make up a significant portion of U.S. gamers.
- Seventy-three percent (73%) of African Americans 13 and older identify as gamers compared to 66% of the total population.
- Sixty-one percent of African Americans agree that they enjoy learning about technology or electronics products from others (14% higher than for non-Hispanic whites), and 54% agree they enjoy reading about new technology products (8% higher).
- One of the critical ways African Americans spend time online is food shopping. African Americans over-index against the total U.S. dollars per buyer spent online in most grocery categories.
- Meal kits are increasingly becoming an option for busy parents. African Americans over-index against non-Hispanic whites by 21% for agreeing they would consider buying meal kits to save time on grocery shopping (40% vs. 29% for non-Hispanic whites), on meal prep and cooking (43% vs. 34%) and on meal planning (42% vs. 33%).
Even though roughly 30 million Americans still lack access to broadband, “[in] a period of population shifts, fragmentation, and intense competition for attention,” Nielsen notes that “African Americans are entering a technology-driven marketplace with an unprecedented sense of community, economic consciousness and digital-native know-how. Hispanics are using technology and social media to rewrite the rulebook; and Asian Americans are galvanizing toward better representation and a stronger voice.”
One of the biggest takeaways from the panel was its overall consensus on how officials and community leaders could use the information that had been shared to assist in their efforts to reach and connect with communities of color. Francella Ochillo stated that congressmembers are in a position to make social change in all aspects of their work and lives - not just legislatively. For example, if members are asked to serve on the board of a company, they could mention the percentage of Hispanics in their district and ask question the lack of comparable representation on that board, if the disparity exists.
“These studies and statistics are important,” she said. “We need to use data to our advantage for social good.”