A new Rasmussen Reports poll reveals that a majority of voters believe most mainstream media outlets are aiming to assist far-left Democrat Vice President Kamala Harris in her bid for the White House over former President Donald Trump. According to the poll, 50 percent of likely U.S. voters expect most reporters to support Harris leading up to the November presidential election, while 14 percent anticipate they will back Trump. About 26 percent think reporters will provide unbiased coverage, and 10 percent are unsure.
“Looking ahead at the campaign, 66 percent of Republicans, 34 percent of Democrats, and 50 percent of unaffiliated voters expect most reporters to try to help Harris,” according to the poll report. “Thirty-eight percent (38 percent) of Democrats say most reporters will offer unbiased coverage instead, but only 14 percent of Republicans and 26 percent of unaffiliated voters agree.”
The survey revealed that 60 percent of respondents believe most reporters attempt to assist their preferred candidate when covering political campaigns, an increase from 51 percent in the 2020 election cycle. Nearly 30 percent (28 percent) disagree, asserting that most reporters are unbiased, while 12 percent are unsure. It should be noted that, historically, the vast majority of ‘mainstream’ media correspondents overwhelmingly vote and support Democrats, according to previous surveys.
The survey found that Democrats (44 percent) are more likely than Republicans (16 percent) and unaffiliated voters (23 percent) to believe reporters strive to provide unbiased campaign coverage. Conversely, 74 percent of Republicans, 64 percent of unaffiliated voters, and 45 percent of Democrats think reporters are biased in favor of the candidate they support. Nearly 60 percent (57 percent) believe Harris has received the most favorable treatment from the media so far, while 29 percent think the media have favored Trump. Thirteen percent are undecided.
“Majorities of every political category – 65 percent of Republicans, 53 percent of Democrats and 54 percent of unaffiliated voters – say Harris has received the best treatment from the media so far,” the poll report reads. President Joe Biden’s most ardent supporters are more likely to view the media as unbiased. Over half (55 percent) of voters who “strongly approve” of Biden’s job performance believe most reporters strive to provide unbiased campaign coverage. In contrast, only 7 percent of voters who “strongly disapprove” of Biden share this view.
Republican pollster Frank Luntz, who is critical of Trump, nevertheless believes the former president and 2024 GOP nominee is attracting a substantial “silent majority” of support from blue-collar union workers. These workers, Luntz argues, have increasingly distanced themselves from their liberal leadership and are not being shy about voicing that opposition.
Speaking on CNN, Luntz explained how, over more than three decades of polling Americans, he has never seen such animosity between union bosses and their bases. Trump, he added, is the fissure line. “I assure you that Donald Trump is doing better among the average union member – not teachers unions and not the unions for government, but everybody else – trades, people working with their hands.
“He’s doing better among them than any Republican has done in decades. This is not gonna be a problem for him. The union leadership is more divided from their membership, and the louder it is, the greater the divides are gonna come,” he told host Abby Phillip and the rest of the panel. “And in my focus groups, and this is remarkable to me, the union membership says ‘They don’t speak for me,’” Luntz continued. “I’ve been in this now since, and I hate to say this, 1989, 1990. I’ve never had union people publicly say ‘they don’t speak for me,’” he reiterated.
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Disclaimer: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author’s opinion.