Exhibit 2-5: Gallup Polls on Media Bias
Almost every year from 2001 through 2013, Gallup has polled American adults on the question: 'Now thinking for a moment about the news media: In general, do you think the news media is too liberal, just about right, or too conservative.' Each year, the number of Americans saying the media are too liberal has outnumbered those seeing a pro-conservative bias by about a three-to-one margin. Gallup also found that while a large majority of Democrats said they had trust and confidence in the media, a similarly large percentage of Republicans expressed little or no trust in the media.
KEY FINDINGS:
In September 2013, three times as many Americans said that the media are too liberal (46%) than said the media are too conservative (13%).
Since 2001, the percentage saying the media are too liberal has ranged from 44 percent to 48 percent; the percentage seeing the media as too conservative has never exceeded 19 percent.
Gallup in 2013: "Perceptions of a liberal bias are particularly strong among Republicans and conservatives, with 74% and 73% saying the media are too liberal. However, half of all independents also call it too liberal, while most Democrats call it 'just about right.'">
In 2013, just one-third of Republicans (33%) told Gallup they had a great deal or fair amount of trust and confidence in the media, while the majority of Democrats (60%) said they trusted the media. Only 37% of self-described independents said they trusted the press.
Gallup's bottom line in 2013: "Although up from the all-time low found last year, Americans' confidence in mass media remains lower than it was in the late 1990s and early 2000s."
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