Americans aren't the only ones who spend more time online than they do reading print. A new report from Jupiter Research suggests that Europeans also log more time surfing the Internet than they do reading newspapers and magazines.

Don't choke on your croissant just yet. The Financial Times summarizes the study, but hastens to point out that "the growth of new media is expanding total media consumption rather than simply cannibalising print and television." It seems that Europeans continue to read as much as they did in 2004 - about three hours per week - but their online hours have doubled from two to four.

Three hours a week? That's hardly time to get warmed up reading Le Monde with a "petit cafe" and a Gitane at the Deux Magots. But that seems to be the norm these days. According to the FT, again via Jupiter, Americans also spend only three hours a week reading. But, in the U.S., we spend 14 hours a week online - about the same as we do watching TV. So the Euros can still claim to be somewhat more civilized, or backward.