Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
In March, 2001, the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press and the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life began a partnership to conduct a series of national public opinion surveys on religious attitudes. With the events of September 11, we accelerated our agenda to investigate how religious beliefs shaped public reactions [...]
Introduction Over the past year, many of the dramatic reactions of the public to the events of Sept. 11 have slowly faded. The spike in trust in government is mostly gone, the public once again is highly critical the of the news media, and even President Bush’s approval ratings have come down from the stratosphere.(1) [...]
Introduction and Summary The public’s news habits have been largely unaffected by the Sept. 11 attacks and subsequent war on terrorism. Reported levels of reading, watching and listening to the news are not markedly different than in the spring of 2000. At best, a slightly larger percentage of the public is expressing general interest in [...]
Introduction and Summary Opinion leaders around the world believe that the events of Sept. 11 opened a new chapter in world history, but their views about the United States and its struggle with terrorism reflect a more familiar love-hate relationship with America. Influentials in much of the world, except for Western Europe, see mixed [...]
Introduction and Summary For the first eight months of 2001, public interest in the news was modest at best. The rising price of gas and China’s release of a detained American air crew were the only stories to attract close attention from majorities of the public. Other big stories President Bush’s first year, the [...]
Introduction and Summary The Sept. 11 attacks have increased the prominence of religion in the United States to an extraordinary degree, but not at the expense of acceptance of religious minorities. Fully 78% now say religion’s influence in American life is growing up from 37% eight months ago and the highest mark on this [...]
Introduction and Summary These are the best of times and the worst of times for the news media when it comes to public support. By and large, Americans continue to praise the press for its coverage of the war on terrorism, here and abroad. So much so that the general image of the media has, [...]
Introduction and Summary The public’s worries over terrorism have declined since mid-October, despite government warnings of new attacks and recurring anthrax incidents. But this decrease in concern is not being felt uniformly across the country, and is not associated with greater confidence in the government’s ability to deal with the terrorist threat. If anything, Americans [...]
Introduction and Summary The terrorist attacks and the war in Afghanistan have created a new internationalist sentiment among the public. There is much more support for a multilateral foreign policy than before Sept.11, with roughly six-in-ten (59%) now saying that the interests of allies should be taken into account by U.S. policymakers. By about a [...]
Introduction and Summary As reports of anthrax attacks dominate the media, the public is paying far greater attention to news of terrorism at home than to the war in Afghanistan. Interest in terrorist attacks is now running as high as during the early days after Sept. 11 – fully 78% are following news of terrorism [...]
Report Summary America’s view of the world changed dramatically, and perhaps permanently, on Sept. 11. But in order to measure the nature and extent of these changes it is important to understand where attitudes toward international issues stood before the attacks occurred. A three-month survey by the Pew Research Center, in collaboration with the Council [...]
Introduction and Summary Reports of new anthrax cases in New York and elsewhere are not raising public anxiety or further demoralizing Americans. Reports of depression, sleeplessness and concern over renewed terrorism have not increased following the news on Oct. 12 that an NBC employee had been infected with anthrax. In the wake of those reports, [...]
Introduction and Summary The American public is beginning to recover from the shock of the terrorist attacks – but it still has a long way to go. As many as 42% report that they have felt depressed in recent days because of the events of September 11, 21% say they continue to have difficulty concentrating [...]
Introduction and Summary The public’s strong commitment to the use of military force in retaliation for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks is predicated at least in part on the idea that a good offense represents the best defense. By 44%-33%, Americans think that taking military action abroad to destroy global terrorist networks is more important [...]
Introduction and Summary Americans are standing tall at a time of crisis — they are united in their approval of the nation’s leaders, paying rapt attention to news, and say they are willing to suffer thousands of military casualties in a protracted conflict to retaliate for last week’s terrorist attacks. But at the same time [...]
Summary Most Americans acknowledge the fact that terrorists could strike a U.S. city with a nuclear, chemical or biological weapon, yet few worry about the possibility, according to the findings of a recent nationwide Pew Research Center survey. The poll confirms the lack of public engagement on this issue experienced by Senator Richard Lugar, who [...]
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About Pew Research Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping America and the world. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. Pew Research does not take policy positions. It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts.
