Politics & Media

Senior research staff answer questions from readers relating to all the areas covered by our seven projects, ranging from polling techniques and findings, to media, technology, religious, demographic and global attitudes trends.

The economy remained the No. 1 story for the ninth consecutive week while the 2012 presidential race continued its recent spike in coverage last week. And dramatic developments regarding Syria and Libya drove Mideast coverage to its highest level in nearly three months.

While the focus this year has been on the GOP's race, Democrats express about as much interest in 2012 candidates as do Republicans.

The stalemate over deficit reduction and the entry of another candidate into the crowded 2012 presidential race made the economy and election the two leading stories last week. Meanwhile media attention to Afghanistan fell dramatically, highlighting the episodic and uneven coverage of that decade-old conflict.

Bloggers, last week, overwhelmingly disapproved of President Obama’s proposal to withdraw 10,000 troops from Afghanistan by the end of the year. But what they called for instead varied greatly—from wanting all the troops home to calls for sending more support.

A discussion forum focused on using social networking and digital tools to reinvigorate democracy and extend electronic engagement from campaigns and grassroots-activism to governance.

Senior Research Specialist Aaron Smith will discuss “Emerging Trends in E-Government” on a panel at the Digital Citizen Satisfaction Summit in Washington, DC.

The fighting in the Mideast, and especially Libya, topped the news last week, narrowly ahead of the U.S. economy. But perhaps the most interesting development was the emergence of the presidential campaign as a major story—thanks in large part to one controversial candidate-in-waiting.

For a second week in a row, the media focused on the economy and away from foreign affairs. Last week, driven by a Presidential speech, the government shutdown was replaced with a larger debate about national fiscal priorities. Lurking in the background was the 2012 presidential race, a story that gave tycoon and Obama birth certificate skeptic Donald Trump a platform of his own.

54% of adults used the internet for political purposes in the 2010 election cycle, far surpassing the 2006 midterm contest.