Privacy evokes a constellation of concepts for Americans—some of them tied to traditional notions of civil liberties and some of them driven by concerns about the surveillance of digital communications and the coming era of “big data.” While Americans’ associations with the topic of privacy are varied, the majority of […] Read more »
High anxiety, low expectations as election nears
As Election Day nears, America is the Land of the Fearful. Voters are rattled by the Ebola virus, braced for years of conflict against the terrorist group Islamic State and still worried about jobs, a nationwide USA TODAY Poll finds. Two-thirds say the nation faces more challenging problems than usual; […] Read more »
Support for U.S. Campaign against ISIS; Doubts about Its Effectiveness, Objectives
The public continues to support the U.S. military campaign against Islamic militants in Iraq and Syria. But most Americans say the U.S. military effort against ISIS is not going well, and just 30% think the U.S. and its allies have a “clear goal” in taking military action. CONT. Pew Read more »
More Americans Back U.S. Ground Troops in ISIS Fight
More Americans now say that they believe U.S. military action against ISIS should include American combat troops on the ground, according to a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll. CONT. Carrie Dann, NBC News Read more »
66% Favor Airstrikes Against ISIS, but 52% Oppose US Sending Ground Troops
The latest Reason-Rupe poll finds 66 percent of Americans favor airstrikes against Islamic State militants, also known as ISIS, in Iraq and Syria, while 28 percent oppose. However, committing ground troops is far more controversial. A slim majority—52 percent—opposes sending ground troops to combat ISIS, while 43 percent would support […] Read more »
How sensationalist TV stories on terrorism make Americans more hawkish
… Political and media observers, particularly on the left, worry that media coverage of the Islamic State is terrifying Americans and persuading them to support foreign policies and candidates that they would otherwise not support. Political science suggests that their fears are warranted. My own research – conducted in the […] Read more »