Americans are increasingly divided when it comes to politics. In Congress, there are virtually no liberal Republicans or conservative Democrats and very few moderates. Among the public, Americans have become more sorted, with less overlap between those holding liberal or conservative positions on a variety of issues. Furthermore, there is […] Read more »
A new interactive tool can show us just how polarised Congress has become
The need for political accountability has never been greater. The advances in data science and visualisation in the last decade provides opportunities for creating social awareness to an extent that was not possible for many before. To this end, I built adavis, an open-source, interactive website that visualises nearly 70 […] Read more »
Media Seen as Key to Democracy But Not Supporting It Well
Americans believe the news media play an important role in democracy, particularly in terms of informing the public, yet they do not think the media are fulfilling that role well. Forty-four percent of Americans say the news media are “critical” to democracy, with another 40% saying they are “very important.” […] Read more »
American Views: Trust, Media and Democracy
Technological advances have made it easier for Americans to connect with each other and to find information, including details about the major issues facing the country. But those advances present both challenges and opportunities for individuals and U.S. institutions. … Results of the 2017 Gallup/Knight Foundation Survey on Trust, Media […] Read more »
White racial resentment has been gaining political power for decades
With his crude comment last week about Haiti and Africa, President Trump once again put race front and center in U.S. politics — as he has been doing since he launched his campaign. … Our research shows that racial attitudes have been increasingly influencing U.S. public opinion for at least […] Read more »
The Electability Fallacy
During the recent boomlet of speculation about a potential Oprah Winfrey run for the presidency, rarely was the question of her electability raised. It seems we have Donald Trump to thank for that omission of narrative: His 2016 election victory changed the calculation, even the definition, of electability. And we’re […] Read more »