Staying up to date with the news and staying well-informed may be more exhausting than ever, but Americans still consider it an important part of their civic duty. There’s just one problem. A significant portion of the population does not practice what they preach.
That’s according to a new survey from the Pew Research Center, which found that Americans “overwhelmingly” believe it is “very or very important” to stay informed about everything from immigration and elections to health care and foreign policy. But when it comes to actually educating themselves, far fewer Americans feel “well-informed” about a particular topic.
The Pew survey was conducted from March 6 to March 9, and 1,031 people responded. They were asked about 11 important issues, including health care, elections, presidential power, immigration, taxes and the economy, Social Security, U.S. foreign policy, gun control, childhood vaccines, technology and media regulation, and marijuana regulation.
What are the findings?
Of the survey results, 82% of respondents said it is very or very important for Americans to be informed about health care, but only 34% considered themselves to be that way.
Eighty percent say it is very important for Americans to be well-informed about the president’s powers, or, in Pew’s words, “what the president can and cannot do,” compared to 36% who say they feel the same way.
Voting and the election process were the only topics that met the 50% criterion for people who considered themselves very or extremely informed. Still, 50% is well below the 82% of respondents who think all Americans should be well-informed on the subject.
At the lower end of the survey spectrum, fairly balanced cannabis regulations are in place, with only 31% of respondents believing the subject is important to public understanding, and 23% of respondents considering themselves well-informed on the issue.
Below are the topics Pew asked about and the percentage of Americans who feel very or extremely knowledgeable about them and who think it’s important for everyone to understand them.
- Health care system: 34% vs. 82%.
- Voting and election process: 50% vs. 82%.
- What the president can and cannot do: 36% vs. 80%.
- Immigration and citizenship policy: 39% vs. 76%.
- Economic and tax policy: 24% vs. 75%.
- Social Security: 31% vs. 72%.
- U.S. foreign policy: 23% vs. 71%.
- Gun control: 33% vs. 69%.
- Pediatric vaccine policy: 31% vs. 69%.
- Federal regulation of technology and media companies: 15% vs. 52%.
- Marijuana regulation: 23% vs. 31%.
Where does the information come from?
Pew asked respondents where they gather information about specific topics, such as news media, government sources, social media, social circles, educational spaces, or “other sources.”
Overall, traditional news media topped each source, with government sources and social media coming in second, with an even split on most topics.
Social circles, including family, friends, and acquaintances, are primarily the fourth most popular source of information, while school and formal education are among the least popular sources.
Of course, there are some outliers. For example, schools and formal education lag behind the news media when it comes to what presidents can and cannot do. Meanwhile, when people want to learn about Social Security, they turn to government sources as often as they do to news media.
demographic divide
Overall, older respondents were more likely than younger respondents to say that “it’s important for people to stay informed about some topics and it’s important for them to feel informed about those topics,” Pew said.
Additionally, younger Americans seek information from social media at higher rates than older Americans, who still rely primarily on government sources and traditional news media.
Politically, there are no major partisan divisions. Pew said Democrats and Republicans “have generally shown similar patterns in how they rate the importance of staying informed on a variety of topics and how well-informed they claim to be.”
There are some inconsistencies, reflecting party platforms and preferences.
Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents are more likely to say it is very important or very important (88%) than respondents on the other side (74%) to say it is very important or extremely important for the president to keep people informed about what he can and cannot do, while partisan opinion is also split on childhood vaccines at 73% and 65%, respectively.
Conversely, Republicans were more likely than Democrats to say they were personally knowledgeable about some topics, including voting and election processes (54% vs. 46%), immigration policy (44% vs. 35%), and gun control (39% vs. 26%).
Drew Pittock covers trending news from around the country for USA TODAY. He can be reached at DPittock@usatodayco.com.
