Behind The Mic With Joe Mathieu: Internet Access Tied To Income, Education

BOSTON (CBS) - Most of us think of the Internet as just another utility like power and water. We just expect it to be there.

But amazingly 15-percent of American adults are not online in 2013. And most of them never plan to be.

This comes from a Pew Research Center study which also finds another nine-percent only go online at work. They are not connected at home.

These numbers are compelling because Internet use was growing by leaps and bounds every year going back to the mid-90's when most of us had dial-up connections. But that growth leveled off a few years ago and it hasn't really moved since.

So who would go without access to the Web?

Research shows the older people are, the less likely they are to be online. Nearly half of those 65 and older say the Internet is not part of their lives. No shock there.

But this also has a lot to do with income and education. Almost half of those who are not online failed to finish high school and a quarter of them live in households making less than $30,000 a year.

You've heard it before - knowledge is power. And you could argue that line has never been more true than it is now in the information age.

Follow Joe on Twitter @joemathieuwbz