In January 2018, as Donald Trump completed his first year as president, Bright Line Watch conducted its fourth expert survey on the state of U.S. democracy. At the same time, we conducted an identical public survey – our second – with a nationally representative sample of Americans. This approach allows […] Read more »
Can We Trust Polls?
Polls show that most Americans don’t believe polls. … Trustworthy or not, polls are everywhere. They make for click-friendly headlines and they add a feeling of statistical heft to arguments. … We’ll convene a panel of experts to look at poll methodology, the use of polls in journalism and whether or […] Read more »
Both Sides of the Aisle Agree: The Media Is a Problem
A recent Knight Foundation/Gallup report on Americans’ perceptions of the media and its role in democracy contains many alarming findings for those who work in the media, and for Americans concerned about the relationship between a free press and the public. For example, Americans are much more likely to say […] Read more »
Americans Struggle to Navigate the Modern Media Landscape
As the information available to news consumers has expanded greatly in recent decades, Americans believe the media landscape is becoming harder to navigate. They say the increase in the information available today makes it harder (58%), rather than easier (38%), to be well-informed because people have to sort through lots […] Read more »
What the World Thinks of U.S. Leadership Under Trump
Gallup found a sharp drop in U.S. leadership approval ratings during Donald Trump’s first year in office. In fact, Germany’s leadership approval now leads U.S. leadership approval worldwide. Jon Clifton, Global Managing Partner at Gallup, discusses these important trends, as well as other key findings based on how 134 countries […] Read more »
Do You Trust the Medical Profession?
Trust, in each other and in American institutions, is vital for our social and economic well-being: It allows us to work, buy, sell and vote with some reasonable expectation that our behavior will be met with fairness and good will. But trust has been declining for decades, and the most […] Read more »