Global Public Opinion on Democratic Rights and Free Expression Richard Wike Director of Global Attitudes Research Strasbourg, November 2015
Global Public Opinion on Democratic Rights and Free ExpressionRichard WikeDirector of Global Attitudes Research Strasbourg, November 2015
November 20, 2015 2
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• Established 1996
• Funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts
• Non-profit, non-partisan fact tank in Washington
• Since 2002, we have surveyed in 85 countries
• www.pewresearch.org
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November 20, 2015 3www.pewresearch.org
Methodology
• Surveys conducted across 38 countries from April 5 to May 21, 2015, totaling 40,786 respondents
• Based on nationally representative telephone and face-to-face interviews with adults 18 and older
• The margin of sampling error for the complete set of weighted data is ±2.8% - ±4.3%
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Pew Research Center Democracy Survey 2015Countries surveyed
ATTITUDES TOWARD DEMOCRATIC PRINCIPLES
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Democratic Principles Valued Highly
74%
65
61
56
55
50
94%
91
90
89
88
81
SomewhatimportantVery important
People can practice their religion freely
Women have the same rights as men
Honest elections are held regularly w/ choice of at least two parties
People can say what they want w/o state or gov’t censorship
The media can report news w/o state or gov’t censorship
People can use the internet w/o state or gov’t censorship
Total
How important is it that __ in our country?
Note: Percentages are global medians based on 38 countries.
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Support for Free Speech, Press Freedom and Internet FreedomRegional median saying it is very important that __ without state/gov’t censorship in our country
Note: Global median of 38 countries. Russia and Ukraine not included in Europe median.
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Most Say Religious Freedom, Gender Equality, Elections ImportantRegional median saying it is very important that __ in our country
Note: Global median of 38 countries. Russia and Ukraine not included in Europe median.
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Those with More Education More Supportive of Media FreedomVery important that the media can report the news without state or gov’t censorship in our country
Note: There are also significant differences in 11 other countries. For the purpose of comparing educational groups across countries, we standardize education levels based on the UN’s International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED). For the countries shown, the lower education category is secondary education or below and the higher category is post-secondary or above.
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Higher-Income People Are More Supportive of Press FreedomVery important that the media can report the news without state or gov’t censorship in our country
Note: There are also significant differences in 7 other countries. Respondents with a household income below the approximate country median are considered lower income. Those with an income at or above the approximate country median are considered higher income.
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Women More Likely to Prioritize Gender EqualityVery important that women have the same rights as men in our country
Note: There are also significant differences in 19 other countries.
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Support for Religious Freedom by Personal Importance of Religion
Note: There are also significant differences in 29 other countries.
Very important that people can practice their religion freely in our country
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Higher Internet Usage, More Support for Internet Freedom
South Korea
Australia
Canada
U.S.
UK
Spain
Israel
Germany
Chile
France
Italy
RussiaTurkey
Palest. ter.
Argentina
Poland
Japan
Malaysia
Venezuela
Jordan
Lebanon
BrazilUkraine
MexicoPeru
Vietnam
South Africa
Philippines
Kenya
Nigeria
Senegal
Indonesia
Ghana
India
Tanzania
Burkina Faso
PakistanUganda
0
20
40
60
80
0 20 40 60 80 100
Percent who say they use the internet at least occasionally or own a smartphone
%
Percent who say it is very important that people can use the internet without state/gov't censorship in our country
%
Correlation = .68
ATTITUDES TOWARD TYPES OF SPEECH
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Publics Worldwide Support Right to Criticize Their Government
20%
57
60
66
69
80%
35
35
26
25
People should be able to say these things publicly
Gov't should be able to prevent people from saying these things publicly
Criticize the government's policies
Statements that call for violent protests
Are sexually explicit*
Are offensiveto your religion or beliefs
Are offensive to minority groups
Statements that …
Global medians
* Not asked in Malaysia. Note: Global median of 38 countries.
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Americans More Supportive of Free SpeechPeople should be able to make statements that __ publicly
* Not asked in Malaysia. Note: Global median of 38 countries.
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Global Views about Different Types of Speech
95%
91
90
74
73
70
U.S.
Europe
Latin America
Middle East
Africa
Asia/Pacific
67%
46
50
24
36
27
77%
47
47
20
30
28
People should be able to make statements that __ publicly
Criticize the government’s policies Are offensive to minority groupsAre offensive to your religion or beliefs
Note: Russia & Ukraine not included in Europe median.
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Global Views about Different Types of Speech
People should be able to make statements that __ publicly
52%
39
29
22
20
16
U.S.
Europe
Latin America
Africa
Middle East
Asia/Pacific
44%
31
31
22
15
24
Are sexually explicit Call for violent protests
Note: Russia & Ukraine not included in Europe median.
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Education Divide on Freedom to Critique Government in PublicPeople should be able to make statements that criticize the government’s policies publicly
Note: There are also significant differences in 21 other countries.
ATTITUDES TOWARD MEDIA AND CENSORSHIP
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When Can Government Stop Media from Publishing?
Note: Global median of 38 countries.
Do you think that media organizations should be able to publish information about these types of things or that the government should be able to prevent media organizations from publishing information about these
types of things in some circumstances?
75%
78
81
56
44
55
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Most Support for Press Freedom in Latin America
88%
87
86
76
72
68
Latin America
Europe
U.S.
Africa
Middle East
Asia/Pacific
68%
53
35
44
32
38
Regional median saying media organizations should be able to publish information about …
Large political protests in our country
Economic issues that might destabilize the country’s economy
Sensitive issues related to national security
Note: Russia & Ukraine not included in Europe median.
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Age and Transparency on National Security IssuesMedia organizations should be able to publish information about sensitive issues related to national security
Note: Only statistically significant differences shown.
18-29 30-49 50+ Youngest-oldest diff
% % %
South Korea 52 49 19 +33
Australia 44 32 23 +21
UK 43 28 24 +19
Senegal 26 17 8 +18
Canada 46 38 32 +14
Poland 82 81 69 +13
France 53 52 40 +13
Russia 46 42 33 +13
U.S. 44 34 31 +13
Italy 66 60 54 +12
Spain 65 63 54 +11
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Support for Free Expression High in U.S., EU, Latin AmericaFree expression index
Note: Support for free speech is measured using an eight-item index ranging from 0-8, with 8 representing the most supportive of free expression. Of the questions included in the index, five questions ask about free speech and three questions ask about free press.
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