Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
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Coverage of the debate over health care policy increased dramatically, dominating the news agenda last week. But with contentious shouting matches and overheated rhetoric driving the narrative, America’s news consumers may have gotten more heat than light.
The debate over health care took a new turn last week, as politicians and the media reacted to a new Senate proposal. And one outgrowth of the polarizing battle was that race played its biggest role in the media narrative since Obama became president.
The media geared up for fireworks and drama when senators questioned Barack Obama’s first Supreme Court nominee. But the narrative turned out very differently. And coverage of the economic crisis seems stuck in a predictable pattern.
Overview Americans like science. Overwhelming majorities say that science has had a positive effect on society and that science has made life easier for most people. Most also say that government investments in science, as well as engineering and technology, pay off in the long run. And scientists are very highly rated compared with members […]
Overview The public’s assessment of the accuracy of news stories is now at its lowest level in more than two decades of Pew Research surveys, and Americans’ views of media bias and independence now match previous lows. Just 29% of Americans say that news organizations generally get the facts straight, while 63% say that news […]
Due largely to the President’s prime time address to Congress, coverage of the health care reform issue exploded last week. And an Obama speech to school children that wasn’t so controversial after all also made the top story list.
Mormons stand out from the general population and other major religious traditions for their conservatism on both cultural and political issues. Strong majorities of Mormons say there are absolute standards of right and wrong and that they feel their values are often threatened by Hollywood. They also are considerably more Republican than any other major […]