Media & Society

Overview The 2012 presidential campaign was a frustrating experience for many voters, who say the campaign was more negative than usual and had less discussion of issues than in most previous campaigns. Both Obama and Romney get mixed grades for the job they did reaching out to voters, as do campaign consultants, the press and […]

22% of registered voters have announced their vote for president on social media like Facebook or Twitter

Barack Obama and Mitt Romney have both received more negative than positive coverage from the news media in the eight weeks since the conventions, but Obama has had an edge overall, a new PEJ study finds. The report also examines how the candidates fared in different media outlets, the tone of the conversation on social media and offers comparisons to 2008 campaign coverage.

55% of registered voters have watched political videos online this election season, and 52% have had others recommend political videos for them to watch online

As the presidential election enters the last lap, where are people going to learn about the campaign and the candidates? A new PEJ survey finds an increasingly diverse ecosystem for political news.

10% of 2012 presidential campaign donors have contributed via text message or cell phone app.

Overview Republicans express increasingly positive opinions about the presidential campaign and are now about as likely as Democrats to view the campaign as interesting and informative. In early September, shortly after the party conventions, far more Democrats than Republicans said the campaign was interesting and informative. The new survey by the Pew Research Center for […]

66% of social media users have employed the platforms for at least one of eight civic or political activities with social media

Overview The vast majority of Americans say they followed coverage of the first presidential debate between Mitt Romney and Barack Obama, including 56% who followed the debate live. Most of these real-time viewers watched on television, but 11% of live debate watchers were “dual screeners,” following coverage on a computer or mobile device at the […]

Registered voters on both sides of the political spectrum are using their cell phones to get campaign news, share their views about the candidates and interact with others about political issues