Press Releases

Scientists can minimize the likelihood that their message will be rejected in a politically polarized environment by avoiding advocacy, relying on trusted sources, and inviting the audience to understand the evidence that justifies the scientific conclusion, according to a new study by Annenberg Public Policy Center researchers published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. It showed that conservatives were able to draw the correct inferences about the downward trend in the Arctic sea ice despite exposure to a misleading Fox News report.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- U.S. Vote Foundation (US Vote) and the nonpartisan site FactCheck.org have developed an alliance through which FactCheck.org will provide relevant, timely and accurate political information to voters who create an individual “My Voter Account” on the US Vote website. The project, supported by the Democracy Fund, was created to make it easy for voters to find unbiased, fact-checked news from within their private Voter Accounts.

On Sept. 17, 2014, 47 students and their teachers gathered in Washington, D.C. as part of a coast-to-coast celebration to commemorate Constitution Day.

Americans show great uncertainty when it comes to answering basic questions about how their government works, a survey conducted by the Annenberg Public Policy Center has found. The survey was released for Constitution Day, Sept. 17, in conjunction with the launch of the Civics Renewal Network.

Constitution Day, Wednesday, Sept. 17, and the 225th anniversary of the drafting of the Bill of Rights will be celebrated by events spanning the nation, including naturalization ceremonies at iconic sites, students taking the “Preamble Challenge,” a panel in Washington examining the role of civics in American life, and the start-up of an online resource for civics education. The daylong commemoration will launch the Civics Renewal Network, a collaboration among 26 groups, including the Annenberg Public Policy Center.

The struggle against terrorism "has entered a new and dangerous phase," members of the 9/11 Commission said on the 10-year anniversary of their report. The group's new report, developed with APPC and the Bipartisan Policy Center, identified emerging threats and continuing vulnerabilities.

Ten years ago, the 9/11 Commission urged Congress to overhaul its supervision of the Department of Homeland Security in the name of national security. At the time, Homeland Security answered to 88 Congressional committees and subcommittees. The issue was spotlighted in an ad in the New York Times.

The Annenberg Public Policy Center has partnered with NBC News and the Wall Street Journal on surveys of the American public through the 2014 election. The Annenberg/NBC News/Wall Street Journal Survey will examine Americans’ attitudes and opinions about the U.S. Congress from June through the November election.

A new study published in the online journal Media and Communication finds that Americans’ answer to one of the long-running questions in a Gallup poll – are you afraid to walk alone in your neighborhood at night? – may be influenced by the amount of violence shown on popular prime-time television dramas.

Viewers of “The Colbert Report” who watched faux-conservative TV host Stephen Colbert set up a super PAC and 501(c)(4) organization during the last presidential election cycle proved to be better informed about campaign financing and the role of money in politics than viewers of other news channels and shows, according to a new study by researchers at the Annenberg Public Policy Center.