The Internet and Campaign 2010
54% of adults used the internet for political purposes in the 2010 election cycle, far surpassing the 2006 midterm contest.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
The past year has seen a series of momentous political events – rising unemployment, passage of controversial health care legislation, a sweeping defeat for Democrats in the midterm elections and a historically active lame-duck session of Congress. But the public’s impression of Barack Obama has remained remarkably steady. At the start of 2010, 49% of […]
As Congress begins with a new Republican majority in the House of Representatives, about a third (34%) of Americans approve of GOP congressional leaders’ policies and plans for the future; 43% disapprove. Public approval of Republican plans has declined by seven points since the party won back the House in November’s election; two months ago […]
Senator John McCain’s support for President Obama’s speech at the Arizona memorial and the dawn of a new GOP-led House of Representatives focused bloggers’ attention last week. On Twitter, stories about Apple’s financial health drew the most interest. And on YouTube, the dramatic floods in Australia revealed the impact of the tragedy to the world.
The politics behind the 112th Congress led the online conversation last week as bloggers jousted over the mandate and implications of a GOP-led House. On Twitter, the announcement that Apple was now the second-most valuable company in the world was the No. 1 subject. And on YouTube, an excerpt from a BBC show demonstrated just how endearing polar bears can be.
Attention to the health of both Gabrielle Giffords and civic discourse helped fuel continuing coverage of the Tucson shooting spree last week. Some White House summitry, hard times for state treasuries and another round in the legislative battle over health care reform also generated significant coverage.
The violence in Libya and the political standoff in Wisconsin continued to drive the news agenda last week while a potential government shutdown and a significant health care development got about the same attention as the misadventures of a troubled actor.
The arrest of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and the death of Elizabeth Edwards both received substantial coverage, but it was the reaction to a compromise on the expiring Bush-era tax cuts that really galvanized the press last week.