Short Reads

Short-form data and analysis from Pew Research Center writers and social scientists. To view all our reports and publications, visit our main Publications page.

short readAug 6, 2026

Darline Graham, accompanied by her husband, Larry Nordone, is sworn in as U.S. senator by Senate President Pro Tempore Chuck Grassley of Iowa on July 14. Graham was appointed by South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster following the death of her brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

The U.S. Senate has had 43 appointed members since 1990, and 27 of them (63%) have run to keep their seat.

short readAug 3, 2026

A kindergarten teacher at Ridgetop Elementary School in Austin, Texas, instructs students in Spanish. (Mikala Compton/The Austin American-Statesman via Getty Images)

short readJul 28, 2026

Visitors view the U.S. Constitution at the National Archives in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 23, 2025. (Tom Brenner for the Washington Post via Getty Images)

short readJul 23, 2026

An AI sign at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai in July 2024. (Ying Tang/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

short readsMar 20, 2014

New Muslim American council aims to measure a diverse community

The U.S. Council of Muslim Organizations recently announced its formation, uniting 10 major American Muslim groups.
short readsMar 19, 2014

Religious police found in nearly one-in-ten countries worldwide

As of 2012, at least 17 nations have police that enforce religious norms. Religion police forces are most common in the Middle East and North Africa, and are also found in the Asia-Pacific and in sub-Saharan Africa.
short readsMar 19, 2014

Data Feed: Keystone XL divides Democrats, global views of online censorship, how to gain Twitter followers

A daily roundup of fresh data from scholars, governments, think tanks, pollsters and other social science researchers.
short readsMar 18, 2014

Michelle Obama to visit China, focus on education

Given other economic and environmental problems, however, education is not high on the minds of the Chinese public.
short readsMar 18, 2014

Data Feed: Rising food prices, student learning, coffee-shop geography

A daily roundup of fresh data from scholars, governments, think tanks, pollsters and other social science researchers.
short readsMar 18, 2014

In 2013, 59% of deported immigrants convicted of a crime

President Obama ordered a review of immigration enforcement policies last week, following weeks of growing pressure from Democrats and Latino leaders, one of whom recently called him “deporter in chief.” As the number of unauthorized immigrants sent home nears two million under his administration, the president met with advocates late on Friday and acknowledged deportations […]
short readsMar 17, 2014

Support for gay marriage up among black Protestants in last year, flat among white evangelicals

New Pew Research Center data from 2014 show that just within the past year, growing shares of some Christian groups favor allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry.
short readsMar 17, 2014

Data Feed: Live TV declines as video source, return of the ARM, why Ukraine isn’t fighting Russia

A daily roundup of fresh data from scholars, governments, think tanks, pollsters and other social science researchers.
short readsMar 17, 2014

Resurgent public optimism on the economy? Don’t hold your breath

One of the biggest political puzzles of 2014 is why the public remains so bearish about the economy, and in turn critical of Barack Obama’s stewardship of it, given clear signs that economic indicators are improving. An analysis by Andrew Kohut.
short readsMar 17, 2014

5 key findings about digital news audiences

Web visitors who arrive at news sites by typing in a URL or clicking a bookmark behave quite differently from those who arrive via search engine or social media.