Pew Hispanic/Internet discovers Earth is round.

For at least a decade, I've been saying three key things about the U.S. Latino population and its use of the internet, based on all research that was available at the time and my first hand experience launching the first major Latino forum on America Online.

Hispanics who are most likely to go on-line are

1. Born in the United States
   
2. Bilingual or English Dominiant
   
3. High school or college educated.
   

Despite this, Wall Street in all its wisdom during the go-go days of the late 1990s invested heavily in hugely hyped start-ups focused on Latinos who were:

1. Foreign-born
   
2. and Spanish-dominant.
   

I have to believe this is because the leadership in Wall Street is about the least diverse of any profession on the planet. You're about as likely to find a Latino in a position of power on the Street as in the Daughters of the Confederacy. And if you do, the Latinos are foreign-born elites unfamiliar with the US born Latino population.

Overall, we are talking about folks who's only interaction with US Latinos are with the chambermaids of five-star hotels.

I'll never forget talking to a venture capitalist with Piper Jaffrey who felt so in touch with "la communidad" because his wife had recently bought a Luis Miguel cd. Geez, my brother once bought me a Iggy Pop cd; doesn't mean I'm more in touch with Anglos.

No wonder this guys fell head over heals with Spanish-language sites despite all I was saying.

Well, last Thursday March 14, 2007, the Pew Hispanic/Pew Internet released a study that empiracally confirmed:

Hispanics who are most likely to go on-line are:

1. Born in the United States
   
2. Bilingual or English dominant
   
3. High school or college educated
   

I don't feel the least bit vindicated; these clueless Anglos wasted gobs of money that could have been better spent creating resources that truly serve the community.

Armed with this new data, I sure the Street will come up with something even more idiotic.

Download the full Pew Hispanic/Pew Internet report on PDF format