As the reactions to “Selma” and “American Sniper” suggest, movies often still have the power to provoke national debate. Do they also have the power to affect our view of government? A recent study by Michelle C. Pautz, an associate professor of political science at the University of Dayton, suggests […] Read more »
CNN/ORC poll: Americans believe Sony overreacted to hack
More than 6-in-10 Americans believe that Sony Pictures’ decision to cancel the release of “The Interview” was an overreaction, according to a CNN/ORC poll released on Tuesday. But the U.S. public does think that the incidents which led to that decision were acts of terrorism on the part of North […] Read more »
Dramatic depictions of torture increase support for it
… Pop culture depictions generally show torture to be effective at eliciting actionable intelligence, often in a ticking time bomb scenario that fails to reflect reality. Similarly, public opinion polls ask about support for torture under the presumption that it works. What impact does framing torture as effective have on […] Read more »
Hollywood Tracks Social Media Chatter to Target Hit Films
… To help studio marketers get back ahead of their customers, United Talent Agency and Rentrak, an entertainment data company, are introducing a service called PreAct. It joins an array of Hollywood upstarts peddling “social listening,” a growing field that uses algorithms to slice and dice chatter on social media. […] Read more »
The United States of Unease
… For the past month, CityLab has reported results from the Atlantic Media/Siemens State of the City poll, which explored how Americans living in urban, suburban, and rural areas rate their communities on all the key components of daily life, from education, transportation and safety to the environment and culture. […] Read more »
America Shrugs Off Scandals Plaguing NFL
So much for all that outrage. Nearly 90 percent of Americans say the recent outcry about domestic violence in the NFL hasn’t changed how much professional football they watch — and less than a third of the nation believes NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell should resign. CONT. Mark Murray, NBC News Read more »