Many who use social media say they regularly see false or misleading content, but also view these platforms as offering new avenues for political engagement.
Pew Research Center has examined how people think about democracy, trust in institutions, and the role of information in society for more than a decade. In light of current debates about the state of the democratic process and the importance of truth, the Center has further deepened its focus on public attitudes about the role of trust and facts in democracy. This page is a curation of the most relevant content on those topics.
Many South Africans are dissatisfied with the state of their democracy. Confidence in some civic institutions declined from 1990 to 2013.
Dissatisfaction with democracy is correlated with views on economic conditions, whether key democratic norms are being respected and other issues.
Across 27 countries, more people are unhappy with the state of democracy in their countries than satisfied. Discontent with democracy is tied to concerns about the economy, individual rights and out-of-touch elites.
Twitter users are younger, more likely to identify as Democrats, more highly educated and have higher incomes than U.S. adults overall.
There are partisan divisions over certain aspects of local news reporting, including whether local journalists should express views on local issues.
Many Indians are satisfied with how democracy is working in India. But most see politicians as corrupt and question the efficacy of elections.
Partisans agree political leaders should be honest and ethical, disagree whether Trump fits the bill
While partisans agree that political leaders should be honest and ethical, they differ over whether particular leaders display these traits.
Voters approached the 2018 midterm elections with some trepidation about the voting process and many had concerns that U.S. election systems may be hacked. After the election, however, most say it was “very easy” to vote and confidence in election security has increased.
From the start of Trump’s presidency, Americans have been divided along partisan lines in their views of him. Our video aims to place views of him in context.
