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1 / 14#14. Kodiak Island Borough and Kenai Peninsula Borough
- Kodiak Island Borough population: 12,565
- Kenai Peninsula Borough population: 61,223
- Social connectedness index: 391,434
Most socially connected boroughs in Alaska
In today's digital age, social media platforms enable people to bridge geographic distances and connect with their friends, family, and community, no matter where they are. According to a 2022 Gallup and Meta study, at least 1 in 3 people across seven countries, including the U.S., said they used social media to interact with others at least once a day in the past week.
While social media has its drawbacks—such as pulling attention away from other tasks or fostering a problematic comparison culture—it remains a vital tool for helping people stay connected.
A majority of students in grades 3 to 12 said social media helped them develop relationships, learn social skills, and make a positive impact in their community, according to a 2024 report from The Social Institute.
Spokeo compiled a ranking of the most socially connected boroughs in Alaska using 2021 data from Facebook, based on a national analysis. Borough pairs were ranked by their social connectedness index, which measures the relative probability that two individuals across two locations are friends with each other on Facebook. The social connectedness index is a scaled value up to a billion. Larger indexes indicate a greater share of Facebook friends between borough pairs.
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2 / 14#13. North Slope Borough and Matanuska-Susitna Borough
- North Slope Borough population: 10,603
- Matanuska-Susitna Borough population: 108,317
- Social connectedness index: 664,456
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3 / 14#12. Anchorage and Dillingham Census Area
- Anchorage population: 286,075
- Dillingham Census Area population: 4,607
- Social connectedness index: 1,304,930
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4 / 14#11. Valdez–Cordova Census Area and Southeast Fairbanks Census Area
- Valdez–Cordova Census Area population: 6,734
- Southeast Fairbanks Census Area population: 7,077
- Social connectedness index: 1,565,503
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5 / 14#10. Juneau and Sitka
- Juneau population: 31,555
- Sitka population: 8,282
- Social connectedness index: 2,095,448
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6 / 14#9. Aleutians West Census Area and Aleutians East Borough
- Aleutians West Census Area population: 5,160
- Aleutians East Borough population: 3,461
- Social connectedness index: 4,475,802
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7 / 14#8. Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area and Fairbanks North Star Borough
- Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area population: 5,129
- Fairbanks North Star Borough population: 94,840
- Social connectedness index: 5,706,831
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8 / 14#7. Northwest Arctic Borough and Nome Census Area
- Northwest Arctic Borough population: 7,361
- Nome Census Area population: 9,763
- Social connectedness index: 7,038,972
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9 / 14#6. Ketchikan Gateway Borough and Prince of Wales–Hyder Census Area
- Ketchikan Gateway Borough population: 13,738
- Prince of Wales–Hyder Census Area population: 5,696
- Social connectedness index: 10,713,548
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10 / 14#5. Wrangell and Petersburg Borough
- Wrangell population: 2,064
- Petersburg Borough population: 3,427
- Social connectedness index: 11,819,041
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11 / 14#4. Yakutat and Hoonah–Angoon Census Area
- Yakutat population: 687
- Hoonah–Angoon Census Area population: 2,262
- Social connectedness index: 16,039,225
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12 / 14#3. Bethel Census Area and Kusilvak Census Area
- Bethel Census Area population: 18,224
- Kusilvak Census Area population: 8,001
- Social connectedness index: 18,138,471
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13 / 14#2. Skagway and Haines Borough
- Skagway population: 1,095
- Haines Borough population: 2,070
- Social connectedness index: 19,524,720
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14 / 14#1. Bristol Bay Borough and Lake and Peninsula Borough
- Bristol Bay Borough population: 844
- Lake and Peninsula Borough population: 1,331
- Social connectedness index: 44,797,874
This story features data reporting by Karim Noorani, writing by Kayla Zhu, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 46 states.
