SAN FRANCISCO – A landmark report released today by Common Sense Media finds that teenagers (ages 13-18) use an average of nine hours of entertainment media per day and that tweens (ages 8-12) use an average of six hours a day, not including time spent using media for school or homework.

Despite the significant amount of time teens and tweens spend with media, not all young people use media in the same way. The study, Common Sense Census: Media Use by Tweens and Teens, found that race, class and gender all play a role in how kids are likely to consume media. The report identifies a significant digital equality gap between low-income kids who are far less likely to have access to computers, tablets and smartphones than their wealthier peers. However, those low-income kids who do have access are more likely to spend more time on their devices than kids from more affluent families.

Common Sense Census: Media Use by Tweens and Teens also finds major differences in media preferences between boys and girls. For example, teen boys average 56 minutes a day playing video games, compared to girls' 7 minutes and teen girls spend 40 minutes more a day than boys on social media (1:32 vs. 52 minutes).

While many of the newer entertainment media formats like online videos, mobile gaming and social media have become quite popular, watching TV and listening to music continue to be the media activities tweens and teens enjoy the most and do most often. But in many cases, "old" media are being consumed in "new" ways. In fact, mobile devices now account for 41% of all screen time among tweens, and 46% among teens.

"Our world is changing and kids are spending a lot of time with media -- and they are doing it in a variety of ways and on many platforms," said James P. Steyer, founder and CEO of Common Sense Media. "The census really sheds light on how different media use is for different kids – from boys to girls, low income to more affluent, and kids from all ethnic backgrounds. There are a lot of ways media use can be educational and beneficial for our kids, from learning apps and web sites to creating content. The media use census provides parents, educators and the media industry with an excellent overview of what kids are doing today and how we can make the most of the media and technology in their lives."

Other key findings: