News IQ
2010-02-01 19:33:28.352109+00 by Dan Lyke 7 comments
Holy crap, these people vote? Pew Research Test Your News IQ. Take the quiz to see the results, it's pretty easy (I got 12 out of 12), the results are disturbing.
2010-02-01 19:33:28.352109+00 by Dan Lyke 7 comments
Holy crap, these people vote? Pew Research Test Your News IQ. Take the quiz to see the results, it's pretty easy (I got 12 out of 12), the results are disturbing.
[ related topics: Current Events ]
comments in descending chronological order (reverse):
#Comment Re: made: 2010-02-02 19:36:12.080009+00 by: Dan Lyke
For various reasons I ended up watching the public comment portion of our most recent town council meetings. The left-wing tinfoil hat brigade was out in force.
Perhaps some of the reason that Republicans polled relatively high is that if you listen to right wing talk radio you at least get the relatively simple facts, the ones queried for in that poll, pounded in over and over and over again?
And think about the "vaccination causes autism" crowd, or the "EMF from WiFi will kill us all" crowd. I'd guess those folks poll left.
I also think that, university-wise, most students are arguing politics from the same perspective as they support their college sports team. In Berkeley, it's probably hard to distinguish the two.
#Comment Re: made: 2010-02-02 17:26:49.905772+00 by: ebradway
#Comment Re: made: 2010-02-02 14:24:26.901152+00 by: Larry Burton
M, the people I know tend to consume news and editorials from sources that agree with their world view. The neocons I know appear to be of the same variety that you know but their left leaning counterparts appear to suffer from the same malady. Tin foil hats are noticeable in both camps.
#Comment Re: made: 2010-02-02 12:44:08.86309+00 by: m
The findings of the survey seem to be counterintuitive. None of the neocons that I know have any concept of what is happening in politics other than the fables they tell one another.
Some of the age disparities seem a little strange as well. Don't students on campus argue politics anymore? Its hard to believe that was a phenomenon of the '60s.
#Comment Re: made: 2010-02-02 00:24:59.605037+00 by: Dan Lyke
I went back to look at the results, and the summary article.
I wouldn't have remembered the number of votes necessary to break the filibuster (and, as extension of that, the number of Republicans who voted for the health care bill) if not for the race in Massachusetts hammering that into my head.
I'd love to see a more comprehensive exploration of the notion that men and Republicans know more about current events, because I can tell ya by anecdote that the Republican part of that doesn't seem to be true. On the other hand, there could be a lot of sample bias based on where I live and how I get to know people.
#Comment Re: made: 2010-02-01 21:51:39.928314+00 by: spc476
The only one I got wrong was the chairperson of the GOP. Even scarier---the only news I get is what filters in via the websites I visit (I figure if it's important, I'll hear about it via some channel).
#Comment Re: made: 2010-02-01 21:01:55.830288+00 by: ebradway
Did you look at the demographics breakdown by question? The curves aren't surprising until you look at the questions again. Like "What is the Dow Jones Industrial Average current closest to" was in 5K increments but still so few people had any idea.
I did manage to flub the number of women Supreme Court Justices. I also managed to get my fractions inverted on the oil import question. Ironically, these were the 2nd and 3rd most commonly correct answers!
I wonder if more people would have gotten the question wrong: "Can you name the chairperson of the Republican National Committee?" if pictures were shown.