2010-05-04-皮尤-Gulf_Coast_Oil_Spill_Grabs_Public_Attention_15页_66kb

Gulf Coast Oil Spill Dominated News Interest

Recent News Coverage (April 30-May 3, 2010):

• Coverage: Gulf Coast oil spill accounted for 16% of news coverage, tying with the Arizona immigration debate at 2%. The economy made up 24% of coverage.
• News Interest (Very Closely Followed):
  • Gulf Coast Oil Leak: 44%
  • Arizona Immigration Law: 36%
  • Economy: 32%
  • Goldman Sachs Testimony: 17%
  • Financial Regulation: 19%
  • Greek Financial Crisis: 6%
• Most Talked About Story: Gulf Coast oil leak (26%), followed by Arizona Immigration Law (12%).
• Who Followed Oil Leaks Closely? Democrats (49%) more than Republicans (39%).

Increased Interest in Gulf Crisis Compared to Past Week & 1989

• Very Close Following of Oil Spill: 44% this week vs. 21% the week before.
• Rose to the highest level since the Exxon Valdez spill (52% very close following).

Large Majorities Know Facts About Top Stories (Knowledge Survey, April 29-May 2)

• Louisiana (oil spill location): 82%
• Arizona (immigration law): 79%
• Goldman Sachs (fraud lawsuit): 67%
• Greece (financial crisis): 49% did not know
• Charlie Crist (Florida governor, Senate candidate): 35% did not know (Democrats had 38%)

Public Awareness by Topics & Demographics (Knowledge Survey)

• Regional Differences:
  • Total: 82%, 79%, 67%, 49%, 44% correct for oil spill, immigration law, Goldman Sachs, Greece, Charlie Crist resp.
  • Men generally scored higher (especially on Crist & oil spill).
  • College graduates scored highest (89% on Goldman Sachs).
  • HS or less scored lowest (47% on Goldman Sachs).
• Partisan Differences:
  • Republicans (67%) scored best on identifying Louisiana.
  • Democrats scored lowest (76%) on identifying Louisiana.
  • Republicans scored highest (51%) on Greece.

Arizona Immigration Law Still Key but Less Notable than Oil Spill

News Interest (Very Closely Followed):

• New AZ Law: 36%
• Very closely followed by 36% fewer than peak interest in mid-2006 (44%).

News Interest Index: Measuring Public Interest

Methodology & Findings

• Weekly tracking of public interest via telephone survey.
• Includes the top stories poll and a knowledge test about current events.
• Sample size ~1,000 adults.
• Margin of sampling error provided for demographics and periods.
• Recently measured awareness levels dropped somewhat compared to the prior week (#2 survey).