• 83 percent of those surveyed have health insurance. A majority (66 percent of women and 52 percent of men) has family doctors, and 40 percent of Blacks who go online search the Internet for health and medical information.

• 83 percent of those surveyed describe themselves as Christian, though only 41 percent go to church at least once a week. Seventy percent of women and 59 percent of men believe that faith in God is more likely to help them recover from a serious illness.

• 72 percent want to learn more about how to invest. Fifty percent believe banks and other financial institutions do not understand their needs, and only 8 percent trust credit card companies.

• 21 percent shop for fun frequently and 19 percent said they have to have what they like even if it costs more than they would like to spend.

• Blacks

are wary of many American institutions. They have the highest level of trust in Black media and the education system to treat them and their families fairly (30 percent) compared to 24 percent for the health care system, 12 to 16 percent for police, government, and mainstream media and 8 percent for credit card companies.

• 84 percent of households have cable. Eighty-one percent of those surveyed watch Black TV channels weekly, 87 percent listen to radio in a typical week (only 16 percent listen to satellite radio), 64 percent watch news or news magazines and 50 percent watch court shows (compared to 41 percent for sports and 46 percent for entertainment).

• Blacks are not satisfied with how they are portrayed by the media, even on Black TV channels. Fifty percent who do not relate to the way Blacks are portrayed on most Black TV shows. Only 29 percent agree that the mainstream media portrays Blacks in a positive light.