Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
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Introduction and Summary Most Americans are willing to join other countries in setting standards to improve the global environment and a majority would even pay more for gasoline to reduce global warming. But on the eve of the December Kyoto conference on climate change, the American public strongly rejects the notion that the United States […]
Design of the Influential Americans Survey Sample The purpose of the Pew Center survey was primarily to learn what America’s leadership elites believe America’s role in the post Cold War world should be. These leadership respondents, whom we call America’s Influentials or Opinion Leaders, consisted of 591 men and women chosen from recognized lists of […]
Survey Findings In an era in which virtually all Americans share very few things, the story of Princess Diana’s death captivated the nation. Nearly nine in ten Americans paid attention to news of the tragedy and more than half (54%) followed the tragedy very closely. No other story this year has come close. Modern communications […]
Introduction and Summary The post-Cold War era may be less than a decade old, but Americans whose views help shape U.S. foreign policy have grown remarkably comfortable with it. Compared to four years ago when they were deeply troubled, American Opinion Leaders today see the world as a better place, where U.S. influence is enhanced […]
Introduction and Summary For the first time in a very long time, Americans are happy with the country’s course and it is beginning to pay dividends to the political establishment. Not only are Bill Clinton’s approval ratings approaching Reagan’s at a comparable point, but support for Congressional incumbents is at a decade high, and interest […]
But Still, Show Me Despite positive feelings about the legislation, Americans continue to doubt that the budget will actually be balanced by the year 2002. Only 16% think the budget will be balanced, 77% think it will not be — down slightly from 85% in May. Assuming the budget is balanced, the public is divided […]
Survey Findings Pew’s latest News Interest Index finds that a little bit of news about Medicare reform travels a long way, while a lot of news about tax relief is mostly greeted with shrugs and disbelief. Fewer than four in ten Americans (38%) paid close attention to the ongoing Washington debate about how to cut […]
Survey Findings An analysis of public attentiveness to more than 500 news stories over the last ten years confirms that the American public pays relatively little attention to many of the serious news stories of the day. The major exceptions to this rule are stories dealing with natural and man-made disasters and U.S. military actions. […]
Old Ways Work Best Many of the problems and challenges mothers face today are related to changes in the lives of women and the evolution of the American family. The jury is still out on whether or not these changes are beneficial for society. Very few women (17%) believe that most divorced couples who split […]
Introduction and Summary Contemporary motherhood is a balancing act for many women. Fully half of American women with children under 18 now work full time, and the biggest challenge they face, in their own words, is dealing with time pressures attendant to being a mother as well as a worker and a wife. No wonder […]