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October 19, 2020

Role of the Media

We are all talking a lot about the role of the mainstream media in our public discourse. Many newspapers, networks and news sites are described as biased, fake news or worse by at least some group in our society.

ActiVote conducted a survey to determine what our users thought about whether any action is needed to change the current situation. We provided five options to choose from, which can be summarized as follows:

  • We can’t believe anything we hear or read. We should rein them in.
  • They are too focused on making money. They should be tightly regulated.
  • It is important to inform us, but they should delineate better between fact and opinion
  • Reporting on specific biases is sufficient
  • However imperfect, they are essential and should be protected at all cost.
The headline result
Rein them in
15%
Tightly regulate them
21%
Should distinguish fact and opinion better
35%
Reporting on bias suffices
7%
Protect at all costs
22%
 See the details below →

We are very much split on what to do. 29% believe that we should either protect at all costs or may report on biases. 35% believes fact and opinion need to be better distinguished and 36% believe that action to regulate or rein in is important.

The crosstabs
Dem
13%
43%
29%
Rep
29%
34%
26%
9%
Ind
15%
18%
35%
10%
22%
Rein them inTightly regulate themShould distinguish fact and opinion betterReporting on bias sufficesProtect at all costs
 See the details below →

There is a partisan divide: a clear majority of 63% of Republicans would like to see that the media are regulated or reined in, but only 20% of Democrats share that opinion. However, if we include simply “distinguishing fact and opinion better” as taking action, 91% of Republicans are on board and 63% of Democrats

The crosstabs
Men
11%
21%
33%
10%
25%
Women
18%
21%
37%
18%
Rein them inTightly regulate themShould distinguish fact and opinion betterReporting on bias sufficesProtect at all costs
 See the details below →

Women are somewhat more inclined to favor regulation to improve our media landscape.

Overall, we seem as divided about what to do or not do about the mainstream media, as the media landscape itself. The only thing we could get a majority to agree on, would be to distinguish fact and opinion better.

Which makes that Pat Moynihan’s 1983 quote is still relevant today: “Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but not their own facts.”

The Details

The answers as asked

Charts and tables use the short label at the start of each line.

  1. Rein them in: You canΓÇÖt believe anything you read, see or hear. We should take action to rein in the mainstream media.
  2. Tightly regulate them: The mainstream media is mostly promoting its own agenda and prioritizes making money over communicating unbiased information. It should be more tightly regulated.
  3. Should distinguish fact and opinion better: The media is important to shed light on what goes on in our democracy but should be more forthcoming on what is fact and what is opinion.
  4. Reporting on bias suffices: Most mainstream media organizations aim to inform us, but cannot avoid some bias in how they report the news. This is unavoidable and reporting on that bias by other media is sufficient.
  5. Protect at all costs: As an essential part of our democracy, the media, no matter how imperfect, plays an essential role in our democracy and should be protected at all costs.

The full crosstab table

ActiVote · Role of the Media · October 19, 2020
ActiVote 5743 RV Rein them in Tightly regulate them Should distinguish fact and opinion better Reporting on bias suffices Protect at all costs
National ±1.3% MoE 15% 21% 35% 7% 22%
Gender Men 11% 21% 33% 10% 25%
Women 18% 21% 37% 5% 18%
Age 18-29 12% 25% 35% 10% 18%
30-49 14% 20% 40% 7% 19%
50-64 20% 21% 32% 4% 23%
65+ 14% 19% 33% 8% 27%
Ethnicity White 18% 27% 26% 8% 21%
Black 7% 24% 37% 8% 23%
Latino 15% 15% 38% 8% 26%
Education High school 18% 25% 31% 7% 19%
Some college 13% 21% 38% 5% 23%
Bachelor's 14% 18% 36% 10% 23%
Income <50k 16% 25% 32% 6% 21%
50k-100k 19% 22% 30% 10% 18%
>100k 9% 17% 43% 6% 26%
Affiliation Dem 7% 13% 43% 8% 29%
Rep 29% 34% 26% 1% 9%
Ind 15% 18% 35% 10% 22%
Region Dark Red 18% 21% 31% 7% 24%
Light Red 9% 29% 30% 6% 26%
Swing 12% 17% 43% 7% 21%
Light Blue 18% 21% 35% 7% 19%
Dark Blue 17% 20% 37% 8% 19%
Methodology. Fielded October 2020 among 5743 registered voters nationwide. Responses weighted by Demographics and Spectrum. Average expected error ±1.3%. See Why trust our polls? for the methodology, disclosures and accuracy record.