Many more Americans trust news on the internet than did so in 1998, when only a small fraction of Americans got their news this way. Currently, 40% of Americans say they trust online news, up from 25% in 1998, the last time Gallup measured opinions on the subject. Since 1998, […] Read more »
Climate scientists may not be the best communicators of climate threats
Climate scientist James Hansen, who has spoken out about the dangers of climate change, was arrested in 2010 alongside Appalachian residents. Rich Clement/flickr Risa Palm, Georgia State University and Toby W. Bolsen, Georgia State University The American public ranks scientists as some of the most trusted voices in the country. […] Read more »
A Nation of Pundits
Ask any New Hampshire Democrats which of the nearly two dozen candidates they’re voting for in the first-in-the-nation presidential primary, which is still six months away, and the reply usually isn’t a name, but a list—a few candidates they like, perhaps, or maybe a couple they’ve ruled out. Ask them […] Read more »
Trust and Mistrust in Americans’ Views of Scientific Experts
In an era when science and politics often appear to collide, public confidence in scientists is on the upswing, and six-in-ten Americans say scientists should play an active role in policy debates about scientific issues, according to a new Pew Research Center survey. The survey finds public confidence in scientists […] Read more »
The Mueller hearing and the death of facts
Lee McIntyre, Boston University Listening to former special counsel Robert Mueller’s testimony on June 24, the nation heard a duel over the facts. Not what the facts imply, not our response to them, but what the facts are. Founding Father John Adams once said, “Facts are stubborn things; and whatever […] Read more »
Trust and Distrust in America
Trust is an essential elixir for public life and neighborly relations, and when Americans think about trust these days, they worry. Two-thirds of adults think other Americans have little or no confidence in the federal government. Majorities believe the public’s confidence in the U.S. government and in each other is […] Read more »