Polls come ad go but unless you have some historical perspective, you might not understand them fully.
The daily Presidential Tracking Poll by Rasmussen shows that 48% of likely U.S. voters approve of President Trump’s job performance. Fifty percent (50%) disapprove. If you hear those numbers on the nightly news, you might come away with the impression that President Trump is one of the most unpopular presidents at this point in his term. Just one problem. Trump’s approval numbers are higher than former president Barack Obama at the same time in his presidency.
At the same time, a news analysis of news coverage on the Trump administration found that last fall only 10% of news reports were positive.
The media’s coverage of Trump and his administration since September has been 90 percent negative, according to a study released by the Media Research Center.
Trump has taken to Twitter often to blast members of the media for their false reporting about his administration and campaign, and the press has been accused of trying to take down Trump by repeatedly reporting on stories that paint Trump in a negative light.
The coverage of Trump on “ABC, CBS and NBC evening newscasts in September, October and November was more than 90 percent negative,” according to the report.
NewsBusters reported on the methodology behind the Media Research Center’s study:
“In September, there were just 31 pro-Trump statements on the Big Three vs. 359 negative. In October, the number of positive statements grew to 41, while the negative statements swelled to 435.”
“In November, there was somewhat less coverage of the President, as political journalists raced to cover the allegations against Alabama GOP Senate candidate Roy Moore, but the ratio remained essentially unchanged: 33 positive statements vs. 320 negative statements.”
A similar study by Media Research Center conducted during the months of June, July and August found a similarly high rate of 91 percent negative coverage.
In another area, because of the recent scrutiny of the FBI and CIA involvement in the investigation into accusations of Russian collusion, the public is making up their mind and its not good for the investigation.
Most voters are now unwilling to give the FBI a pass when it comes to playing politics in the 2016 election. But while 42% of Likely U.S. Voters say Russia is more likely than the FBI to have meddled in that presidential race, 34% now think the FBI is the likelier culprit.
Even before last week’s release of the House Intelligence Committee Republican memo, 49% said a special prosecutor is needed to see if the FBI has been playing politics.
Most major media outlets ignored these polls.
