Report Summary

Interest in news about the economy and the election campaigns increased markedly in the past month, but the crisis in the Gulf continued to be the story most closely followed by the American public. For the fourth consecutive month, approximately two-thirds of Times Mirror’s nationwide sample (62%) reported that it was following the Iraqi occupation of Kuwait and the presence of American military forces in the Gulf very closely. And despite the significance of the budget deficit agreement and the outcome of the mid-term elections, a vast majority of the public (66%) continued to think that news about the Gulf crisis was the most important news of the past month. Just 10% felt that way about election news.