As 2008 draws to a close, last week’s media’s attention was divided more than at any point this year. The economy and Barack Obama’s transition were still among the top stories. But scandals involving the Illinois Governor and a world-famous financial figure, along with the continuing struggles of the U.S. auto industry, also competed for coverage.

The latest study of Pew Research Center election surveys analyzes the effects of conducting both landline and cell phone interviews. While the addition of cell phones had at most a modest effect on estimates of candidate support in individual surveys, when looked at in the aggregate clear patterns emerge.

Findings from Pew Research Center polls over the year told the story of the longest -- and one of the most exciting -- presidential elections in U.S. history as well as recording the public's reactions to other major events ranging from the pope's visit, to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, to the onset of a mega-economic downturn.

While just about everyone knows Obama's new secretary of state, fewer than half were generally aware of where the Dow is trading these days. A new Pew News IQ survey provides an updated look at the public's knowledge of political and world affairs. Test your own knowledge of current affairs against that of the broader public before you read the report.

With desperate automakers asking Congress for $34 billion, Barack Obama unveiling key Cabinet members, and the U.S. scrambling to ease tensions between India and Pakistan, the three top storylines in the news intertwined last week.

A wrap-up of possibly overlooked polling trends and end-of-campaign happenings.

For a host of reasons, the new administration needs to develop a national broadband strategy but research suggests that users must be central actors in its design.

Although no other media stories came close to rivaling the economy’s troubles and the emerging face of the incoming administration, one other story drew sensational coverage: piracy on the high seas.

Still, ideological labels don’t always predict policy opinions; e.g.,about half of self-described conservatives say that all or some of the Bush tax cuts should be repealed while many liberals support off-shore drilling.

The country’s weakened economy rivaled the presidential transition as top story of the week while much coverage focused on two women who ran losing campaigns for the executive branch.