2007-10-22-皮尤-Modest_Interest_in_2008_Campaign_News_15页_74kb

Summary of 2008 Campaign Interest Report

Key Findings

• Partisan Gap: Democrats showed significantly higher interest in the 2008 campaign than Republicans or Independents, a pattern consistent with past elections before primaries.
• Democratic Visibility: Democratic candidates (especially Clinton & Obama) were widely recognized (81% named a Democratic candidate, 78% Clinton, 60% Obama), creating a familiarity gap with less well-known Republican candidates.
• Campaign Interest: Interest was "modestly higher" than previous elections but mostly stable post-April 2007. Only 43% followed news "very/fairly closely" in September-October 2007.
• Campaign Perception: Most (66%) found the campaign "too long," and 55% rated it "dull," with higher dissatisfaction among Democrats and younger Americans.
• News Fatigue: Over 40% felt "overloaded" or could see "too much" campaign coverage; press job ratings were generally negative.
• Issue Focus: Strong desire for more coverage of candidates' backgrounds, fund sources, debates, and positions; less interest in poll standings.

Timeline Comparisons

• Interest levels mirrored patterns from past elections (2000, 2004), with peaks before primaries and consistency in engagement by party.
• 2008 interest was "flat" relative to early year highs but comparable to interest in similar stages of previous cycles.

Party Differences

• Democrats: Higher knowledge, attention, and interest throughout. More supportive of extensive campaign news coverage and content themes.
• Republicans: Lower interviewees named Republican candidates (59%), lower focus on campaign news, and more skeptical of extensive coverage.
• Independents: Increasingly comparable to Republicans in information skepticism but remain distinct from Democrats.

Familiarity Trends

• Democrats were exceptionally well-known, with familiarity surpassing levels from the 2004 cycle and historical campaigns.
• Republicans largely maintained familiarity with candidates like Giuliani but exceeded past GOP awareness levels for certain years.

Takeaways

• Early enthusiasm and high visibility for Democrats positions may favor their nomination, while Republicans face diminished awareness and lower engagement.
• Information overload and campaign fatigue are widespread, potentially impacting voter turnout and strategic media use.
• Public preferences prioritize candidate substance (backgrounds, positions) over predictive polls, a trend repeating across election cycles.