War & International Conflict

A 47-nation survey finds global public opinion increasingly wary of the world’s dominant nations and disapproving of their leaders. Anti-Americanism is extensive, as it has been for the past five years. At the same time, the image of China has slipped significantly among the publics of other major nations.

The 30,000 employees of Private Security Companies currently operating inside Iraq represent a new element in modern-day warfare. They are armed, suffer casualties, are paid by the U.S. government, and perform tasks once done by the nation’s military. But a new study by PEJ reveals that for the most part, these forces have operated below the media radar.

The public is ambivalent about the immigration bill being debated in the Senate, but a majority favors one of its key goals - providing a way for illegal aliens to become citizens. The public supports such a provision even when it is described as "amnesty," a new Pew survey finds.

Summary of Findings The public is ambivalent about the immigration bill being debated by the Senate. Most Americans favor one of its key objectives, but the bill itself draws a mostly negative reaction from those who have heard about it. Just a third of those who have heard something about the bill favor it, while […]

Four months after the bipartisan Iraq Study Group proposed a number of new policy options for dealing with the Iraq conflict, these proposals remain broadly popular with the public.

Four months after the bipartisan Iraq Study Group proposed a number of new policy options for dealing with the Iraq conflict, these proposals remain broadly popular with the public. Read full analysis at Pewresearch.org

Looking for a way to get out its message in Iraq, the U.S. Multi-National Force Iraq has turned to You Tube and has found some success with users who have made the site one of this month’s most popular. The site aims to use footage shot by military personnel to give a fuller picture of Iraq, a spokesman says. PEJ examines the effort.

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.

Summary of Findings With battle lines drawn over legislation funding the Iraq war, the public is showing little appetite for compromise. Overall, a solid majority of Americans (59%) continue to say they want their representative to support a bill calling for a U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq by August 2008, while just a third want […]