Americans Across Party Lines Want the U.S. to Keep Nuclear Limits with Russia, New Poll Finds
As the last remaining U.S.-Russia nuclear limitations treaty expires on Feb. 5, an overwhelming majority of Americans (91 percent) say the United States should negotiate a new agreement with Russia to either maintain current limits on nuclear weapons or further reduce both countries’ arsenals, according to a new YouGov poll commissioned by ReThink Media and…
Read MorePublic Opinion Shifted on Palestine: How Should Advocates Build on That?
At ReThink Media, we closely monitor major public opinion surveys to understand how Americans perceive key issues, such as foreign policy and civic engagement. Over the past two years, one trend has been particularly notable: public opinion on Israel and Palestine has shifted dramatically. What was once seen as a fringe topic has become a…
Read MoreWhat Do People Really Think About Pentagon Spending and the Military-Industrial Complex?
When most people hear the term “military-industrial complex” (MIC), they might think of Eisenhower’s famous warning—or they might not be sure what it means at all. We set out to better understand how people in the US today perceive Pentagon spending, war profiteering, and the MIC’s role in the economy, foreign policy, and society at…
Read MoreInsights to Impact: Using Survey Data in Advocacy Communications
In Part 1 of this series, we explored the strengths and limitations of surveys in general. In Part 2, we examined public opinion polls—how they can help us understand public sentiment but shouldn’t be over-interpreted or used to predict the future. This third and final part brings these concepts together to discuss how to use…
Read MoreBehind the Polls: Understanding Public Sentiment
With election polling currently at a fever pitch, we’ve developed a three-part series designed to aid in understanding, interpreting, and utilizing survey data. This post is the second in this series. In Part 1 of our series, we explored the strengths and limitations of surveys: how they can provide valuable insights but also how they…
Read MoreSurvey Savvy: Strengths and Shortcomings
With election polling currently at a fever pitch, we’ve developed a three-part series designed to aid in understanding, interpreting, and utilizing survey data. This post is the first in this series. Surveys are like the Swiss Army knives of research: versatile, handy, and useful in a wide variety of situations. But, just like you wouldn’t…
Read MoreHow media coverage fuels the China nuclear threat narrative
As China’s nuclear buildup continues amid rising US-China tensions and as bilateral arms control diplomacy stalls, nuclear weapons are becoming an increasingly salient and volatile piece of the already fraught US-China relationship. For the US national security establishment, China and its nuclear program are also increasingly driving US defense strategy and nuclear posture. To better…
Read MoreCan you speak Gen Z: Messaging to Younger and More Diverse Audiences
Every four years, tens of millions of Americans head to the polls to cast their ballot for president, but not before they’ve been inundated by a wave of public polling and electoral predictions. Candidate popularity, voter surveys on key issues, and turnout forecasts—you name it and it’s probably been polled. It’s enough to make anyone’s…
Read MoreRepairing Your Relationship With the Polls Post-2020
Few Americans made any conclusions on Election Night this year, having been forewarned by various experts, pundits, and candidates themselves that the election would likely take days to resolve. But one conclusion popped immediately: the polls were wrong. As more votes are counted, that conclusion has held, although the size of the miss gets smaller…
Read More2020 Has Changed A Lot of Things, and Exit Polling is No Exception
What do TV pundits, advocates, election data geeks, and politicians all have in common? They all want to know who voted, how they voted, and why they voted! Who wouldn’t? For years, the go-to way to do this has been through the national Exit Poll, the mythical deep-dive into the minds of the voters conducted…
Read More