Publications

Nearly a half-century after the Supreme Court issued its landmark ruling striking down school-sponsored prayer, Americans continue to fight over the place of religion in public schools. Indeed, the classroom has become one of the most important battlegrounds in the broader conflict over religion's role in public life.

When evaluating Sen. Hillary Clinton's 2008 prospects, one question remains inescapable: Are American voters ready to pick a female president? A review of exit polls in statewide elections suggests that, at least for Democratic candidates, being a woman is not an obstacle.

Those with close contacts to servicemembers in Iraq or Afghanistan tend to be more supportive of the Iraq war but their differences with those who are not closely connected are relatively modest.

International fans of Pandora’s streaming online music service will have to deal with a rude awakening this week when the company is forced to disable accounts based outside of the U.S. due to licensing issues.

Summary of Findings A story which received relatively little media coverage last week attracted a great deal of public interest. The recall of more than 100 brands of pet food due to possible contamination was the second most closely followed news story last week. Only the war in Iraq attracted more public interest. Nearly three-in-ten […]

Spring is the season for school graduations, and graduation ceremonies play a featured role in the national debate over the place of religion in public education. Is a clergyman’s benediction at a public school event a violation of the separation of church and state? Can students lead a prayer at their school commencement? In a […]

Pew Research Center Ten years ago, the U.S. Congress launched a debate on U.S. international religious freedom policy that ultimately resulted in the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998. Foreign policy actors continue to debate how religious freedom – and religion itself – should be factored into U.S. foreign policy. Has the State Department interpreted […]

That's the proportion of the public that now agrees with the statement that "AIDS might be God's punishment for immoral sexual behavior." When this question was first asked in 1987, public opinion was divided, with 43% agreeing and 47% disagreeing.

That's the portion of the adult U.S. population who completely agree that prayer is an important part of their daily life -- down from a high of 55% in 1999.