Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World

Read our research on:

2011

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    The Economy Leads, but Politics Lurks

    Bad economic news became a political story last week as analysts evaluated the impact on President Obama’s fortunes. Sarah Palin’s bus tour drew as much attention as Mitt Romney’s presidential announcement with the campaign generating its highest level of coverage yet. And two political scandals provoked much speculation and one indictment.

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    Republican Candidates Stir Little Enthusiasm

    Overview The emerging Republican presidential field draws tepid ratings. Just a quarter of voters (25%) have an excellent or good impression of the possible GOP candidates, and a separate survey conducted jointly with The Washington Post finds that negative descriptions of the field far outnumber positive ones. Asked for a single word to describe the […]

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    Casual News Readers Online

    Across the top 25 news websites, three-quarters of all visitors will visit that site only once or twice per month on average.

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    Homosexuality Should Be Accepted by Society

    While gay marriage remains a divisive issue, a 58%-majority of Americans say homosexuality should be accepted, rather than discouraged, by society.

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    College is Not Affordable

    Three-quarters of the public say most people cannot afford to pay for a college education.

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    Purpose of College Education

    Americans are split on the main purpose of college, with 47% saying it is to teach work-related skills and 39% saying it is to help a student grow personally and intellectually.

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    The Burden of Student Debt

    Among adults who took out loans to help pay for college, nearly half say paying back those loans makes it harder for them to pay their other bills.