Internet users are MORE social than non-users

http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2011/The-Social-Side-of-the-Internet.aspx

At the beginning of the Internet in the 1990s social scientists feared that Internet users would become socially isolated, sitting at their computers engrossed in whatever rather than being with people.  The Pew Internet and American Life Project shows that in fact "80% of internet users participate in groups, compared with 56% of non-internet users. And social media users are even more likely to be active: 82% of social network users and 85% of Twitter users are group participants."

In my case, I got online in 1994.  My hobby of exposing cults was a very tiny world of fellow travelers.  But on the Internet I found alt.religion.scientology, a newsgroup devoted to the discussion of the Church of Scientology.  Suddenly my connection to fellow enthusiasts at least quintupled.  From there this hearty band organized real-life protests, where I met dozens of people face-to-face that I would have never even heard of had it not been for the Internet.  Connecting people with niche interests is just one example of how the Internet helps people socialize better than non-users.

Facebook, classmates.com, and such sites make reconnecting with lost friends quite easy.  Meetup.com and such sites make it easy to find people in your geographical area with similar interests.  So contrary to the fears at the birth of the Internet, we have actually become more social than less.  And social connections are the foundation of collective action.