Americans’ Trust In Media Remains Near Record Low

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At 34%, Americans’ trust in the mass media to report the news “fully, accurately and fairly” is essentially unchanged from last year and just two points higher than the lowest that Gallup has recorded, in 2016 during the presidential campaign. …

Americans’ trust in the media remains sharply polarized along partisan lines, with 70% of Democrats, 14% of Republicans and 27% of independents saying they have a great deal or fair amount of confidence. CONTINUED

Megan Brenan, Gallup

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Few think our democracy is working well these days

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As the 2022 election season comes to a head, about half of the public feels our democracy is working poorly and just 1 in 10 think it’s working well. People are slightly more likely to say they have confidence that the votes in the 2022 midterm elections will be counted accurately than they were about the 2020 presidential election. Most adults continue to see voter suppression, voter fraud, and gerrymandering as at least a minor problem.

Only 9% say democracy is working extremely or very well. Republicans have a more negative outlook on how democracy is faring than either Democrats or independents. Overall, there has been little change in the public’s view over the past two years. However, the proportion of Democrats who say democracy is working well has increased since 2020—from 6% to 15%—and the proportion of Republicans who say so has decreased—from 23% to 5%. CONTINUED

AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research

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Fox News Poll: School curriculum a top election concern for parents

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As education increasingly becomes a focus in the midterm election, a new Fox News registered voter survey finds 8 in 10 parents are concerned about what’s being taught in schools. The only issue that worries them more is inflation. Additionally, most parents think there are problems within the school system, including book banning by school boards, parents not having enough say, too much focus on race, and transgender policies. …

Traditionally, Democrats are seen as better able to handle education, but currently, the advantage is small, as voters give them a 3-point edge over Republicans on handling what’s taught in schools (47%-44%). The split is the same among parents. CONTINUED

Victoria Balara, Fox News

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About a third of K-12 parents are very or extremely worried a shooting could happen at their children’s school

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School shootings have hit close to home for many U.S. parents. In a new Pew Research Center survey, roughly a third (32%) of parents of children in K-12 schools say they are very or extremely worried about a shooting ever happening at their children’s school. A similar share of K-12 parents say they are not too or not at all worried (31%), while 37% of parents fall somewhere in the middle, saying they are somewhat worried about a shooting ever happening at their children’s school. …

Reflecting the broader debate over gun policy in the United States, there are significant differences by party when parents are asked about approaches to preventing school shootings. CONTINUED

Kiley Hurst, Pew Research Center

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theGrio/KFF Survey Project Examines Diverse Views of Black Voters Heading into 2022 Midterm Election

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Allen Media Group’s African American-focused news, lifestyle, and entertainment platform theGrio and KFF today released a joint national survey examining the mood and views of Black voters, the only in-depth public survey this election cycle focused exclusively on this group, which has historically been a solid Democratic voting bloc but holds diverse views that often get overlooked in national polling. Coverage of the survey’s findings also begins today at theGrio.com and will run throughout the week on their website and cable television channel.

Unlike a typical national voter poll, the survey reaches a large enough sample of Black voters to examine variations by factors such as age, gender, education, and political affiliation.

The survey finds that about half (51%) of Black voters say they are more motivated to vote this year compared to previous elections, largely due to a desire to elect Democrats or keep Republicans out of power, as well as a general desire for change. CONTINUED

Kaiser Family Foundation

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Voters See Democracy in Peril, but Saving It Isn’t a Priority

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Voters overwhelmingly believe American democracy is under threat, but seem remarkably apathetic about that danger, with few calling it the nation’s most pressing problem, according to a New York Times/Siena College poll.

In fact, more than a third of independent voters and a smaller but noteworthy contingent of Democrats said they were open to supporting candidates who reject the legitimacy of the 2020 election, as they assigned greater urgency to their concerns about the economy than to fears about the fate of the country’s political system. …

The poll showed that voters filtered their faith in democracy through a deeply partisan lens. A majority of voters in both parties identified the opposing party as a “major threat to democracy.” CONTINUED

Nick Corasaniti, Michael C. Bender, Ruth Igielnik & Kristen Bayrakdarian, New York Times

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