What Americans really want from their lawmakers
Americans often say they want their representatives in Congress to put the country’s needs over local concerns. But four novel experiments suggest that the public does just the opposite. In a new study, respondents rated a member of Congress far more favorably if the lawmaker put the interests of his or her district or state [...]
A majority say sexual assaults in the military are individual acts of misconduct, not systemic
A majority of Americans say reports of sexual assaults in the military represent individual acts of misconduct and not underlying problems with military culture.
In Germany, they still love Obama
On Wednesday, Barack Obama returns to Berlin, home to one of the more dramatic moments from his first presidential campaign. In July 2008, speaking beneath the city’s 200-foot-tall Victory Column, Obama pledged to heal the transatlantic divisions that had erupted during then-President George W. Bush’s time in office. “The walls between old allies on either [...]
LGBT voices that shaped our study
Before we launched our first major effort to capture the views and opinions of LGBT adults for our series ‘LGBT in Changing Times,’ we convened a focus group to help inform our approach. In March 2013, we assembled 12 LGBT adults from the Washington, D.C. area: five gay men, three transgender adults, two bisexual men [...]
As more Americans have contacts with gays and lesbians, social acceptance rises
About nine-in-ten Americans know someone who is gay or lesbian, and about a quarter say they personally know “a lot” of gay or lesbian people
Public Split on NSA Leak Impact, Most Say Prosecute Snowden
Young people are more likely than other age groups to think that the NSA leak serves the public interest and are divided over whether Snowden should be prosecuted.
5 facts about Iran
In something of a surprise, Hassan Rouhani was elected president of Iran last week, winning 50.71% of the vote in the first round. Within the context of Iran’s political system, dominated as it is by conservative clergy, Rouhani is generally considered relatively centrist and pragmatic. What sort of country will Rouhani inherit when he’s inaugurated [...]
‘Illegal,’ ‘undocumented,’ ‘unauthorized’: News media shift language on immigration
Even with several major news organizations deciding to reduce or ban its use, the term “illegal immigrant” is still the phrase newspapers most often use to describe foreigners living in the United States without proper documentation. But over time, there have been some shifts in the language applied to those at the heart of the [...]
Public Remains Opposed to Arming Syrian Rebels
About two-thirds (68%) say the U.S. is too overcommitted to get involved in another conflict, and just 27% disagree. The public also has questions about the opposition groups in Syria: 60% say that they may be no better than the current government.
Political views can drive wrong poll answers, unless there’s money involved
Do one’s political leanings blind people to the facts? Judging from decades of polling, the answer is sometimes yes—partisanship appears to lead some people to claim as facts things that aren’t particularly factual.
