… Polling data on actors’ political views are hard to come by. But there’s evidence beyond award-show behavior and Instagram feeds to suggest that the stereotype of the liberal actor squares with reality. …
Three explanations for Hollywood’s liberalism are worth considering. The first focuses on social characteristics that actors share with other liberals. Statistics from the American Community Survey, which is carried out by the United States Census Bureau, back up the common-sense assumption that acting is primarily a blue-state occupation. Fifty-seven percent of working actors live in California or New York.
What’s more, at a time when educational achievement has become one of the best predictors of political attitudes and voting, over 50 percent of actors have at least a bachelor’s degree, as compared with a third of all adults in the labor force. Finally, many actors belong to unions — the Screen Actors Guild or the Actors’ Equity Association — and unions typically nudge workers left. CONT.
Neil Gross (Colby College), New York Times