Evacuation order issued for some Fort McMurray neighbourhoods as wildfire nears
Four Fort McMurray neighbourhoods were ordered to evacuate as a wildfire gets closer to the city.
Whether looking for love or a casual encounter, 3 in 10 U.S. adults say they have used a dating site or app -- with mixed experiences, according to a Pew Research Center study out Thursday. For the under-35 set, more than half have tried it.
The overall number, which amounts to 30 per cent, is unchanged since 2019, the last time the center took a broad look at online dating. In 2015, 15 per cent of U.S. adults said they had used a dating site or app, said lead researcher Colleen McClain.
"When we talk to users who have been on the sites more recently, we see that there is really a mix of emotions," she said. "Everything from burnout to elation."
Among the study's key takeaways for McClain: 1 in 10 adults who have a partner said they met their current significant other on a dating site or app. The number rises to 1 in 5 for those under 30.
Asked about their reasons for using the platforms, 44 per cent of current or recent users had finding a long-term partner top of mind, with 40 per cent responding that they wanted to date casually. Twenty-four percent were in search of casual sex and 22 per cent were hunting for new friends.
Using dating sites and apps is most popular among adults under 30, Pew reported, with 53 per cent saying they have done it. That compares with 37 per cent of those ages 30 to 49; 20 per cent of those 50 to 64; and 13 per cent of those 65 and older.
Atlanta firefighter Andy Giron, 33, is among the pleasantly surprised. He said he had always considered digital dating "a little weird" until recently.
Giron had just gotten out of a long-term relationship in 2019 when he decided to give Tinder a try for some casual dating. That didn't work out after a couple of times but he hit gold on Hinge a short time later.
"My wife was my first date on Hinge," he said. "She was so easy to talk to and we had a lot in common. There was an immediate connection when we first met in person."
The two married six months later, soon after the COVID-19 pandemic hit. They now have a year-old daughter. Giron was inspired to turn to online dating by his sister, who found her spouse the same way.
"I always thought you should meet someone the regular way, in person, but this is the way the world is now," Giron said.
Across age groups, 51 per cent of lesbian, gay and bisexual adults have used a dating site or app.
Men are more likely than women to report positive experiences in digital dating, 57 per cent vs. 48 per cent, and LGB users are more likely than straight users to say the same, 61 per cent vs. 53 per cent. White or Black adults who have used one of the platforms are more likely than Hispanic users to say their experiences have been negative.
The number of men who have used dating sites or apps in the past year and said having casual sex was a major reason was 18 percentage points greater than female users who said the same.
The Pew research is based on a survey of about 6,000 U.S. adults taken from July 5-17 last year.
Online daters' experiences were mixed, with 53 per cent saying they have been at least somewhat positive. Fourteen percent said they have been very positive, and 48 per cent said their experiences have included at least one of four unwanted behaviors explored in the study.
Thirty-eight percent of those reporting negative experiences said they received unsolicited sexual messages or images, and 30 per cent cited unwanted continued contact. Twenty-four percent said they were called an offensive name, and 6 per cent said they were physically threatened.
Female users were more likely to report such experiences, especially those under 50.
Like Giron, 22-year-old Liv Loughlin, a tech company marketing associate in San Jose, California, had just ended a long-term relationship when she first tried digital dating last September.
"I wanted to jump into it, especially to meet people because I was new to the area," she said. "My first date on a dating app was on Hinge and it was crazy. He was immediately very, very touchy and there were all these sexual overtones to everything he said. ... I ended up bailing."
But Loughlin didn't give up. She turned to Bumble and is now happily in a relationship with a man she met there.
"I figured I had hit rock bottom and it couldn't go anywhere but up," she said.
Safety is a large concern for some digital daters. There have been demands over the years for more protections, such as required background checks, in light of reported stalking, and sexual assaults and other violence. Few sites require such checks of every user.
"We see that Americans are divided on this," McClain said. "Forty-eight percent say that dating sites are a safe way to meet people. A very similar share, 49 per cent, say that they're not safe."
A majority overall said dating sites and apps should require people to undergo background checks.
Stacy Overcamp, 58, an unemployed marketing specialist, knows the dangers firsthand. She's been dating online since about 1998, with several contacts leading to relationships over the years.
"I've never had a problem meeting men online. I've had a problem meeting quality men online," said Overcamp, in suburban San Francisco. One long-term relationship ended in stalking, harassment and a restraining order, she said. Other men she dated turned out to be broke, drug users or liars. But she remains active as her priorities have shifted to marriage.
Overcamp estimates 30 or 40 contacts a month.
"It would take me five years to talk with and connect with that many men if I weren't online," she said.
Pew studied eight sites and apps. Tinder was the most commonly used, with 46 per cent of digital dating users saying they had tried it. That amounts to 14 per cent of all U.S. adults. About 10 per cent of U.S. adults said they had used Match or Bumble. Six percent said they had tried OkCupid, eharmony and Hinge.
Grindr and HER were far more popular among lesbian, gay or bisexual online dating users than straight users. Some 34 per cent of LGB users said they had tried Grindr and 10 per cent said they had tried HER.
Four Fort McMurray neighbourhoods were ordered to evacuate as a wildfire gets closer to the city.
Canadian LifeLabs customers who filed an application for a class-action settlement began receiving their payments this week, though at a much lower amount than initially expected.
The doctor who led Toronto through the COVID-19 pandemic as the city’s top public health official is stepping down.
Saskatchewan RCMP have revealed that a historic sexual assault investigation has led to the discovery of alleged crimes against children dating back to 2005.
Wildfires have led Environment Canada to issue air quality advisories for parts of B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories, as forecasters warn the smoke could drift farther east.
An American accused of sexually assaulting a Pennsylvania college student in 2013 and later sending her a Facebook message that said, 'So I raped you,' has been detained in France after a three-year search.
The annual list of Canada's top restaurants in the country was just released and here are the places that made the 2024 cut.
Nobel laureate Alice Munro, the Canadian literary giant who became one of the world's most esteemed contemporary authors and one of history's most honoured short story writers, has died at age 92.
Ontario Provincial Police are responding to a fatal collision involving two vehicles on Highway 417 in Ottawa's west end on Tuesday morning.
A team is ready to help an entangled North Atlantic right whale in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
A $200 reward is being offered by a North Vancouver family for the safe return of their beloved chicken, Snowflake.
Two daughters and a mother were reunited online 40 years later thanks to a DNA kit and a Zoom connection despite living on three separate continents and speaking different languages.
Mother's Day can be a difficult occasion for those who have lost or are estranged from their mom.
YES Theatre Young Company opened its acclaimed kids’ show, One Small Step, at Sudbury Theatre Centre on Saturday.
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
The threat of zebra mussels has prompted the federal government to temporarily ban watercraft from a Manitoba lake popular with tourists.