Americans Disagree with Sony; 26% More Likely to See “The Interview” Now

Most Americans oppose Sony’s decision not to release the film, “The Interview,” after computer hacking and terror threats from North Korea and expect similar cyberattacks to increase against other U.S. companies.

Thirty percent (30%) of American Adults agree with Sony’s decision not to release the comedy about an attempted assassination of the leader of North Korea. But a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 54% disagree with the company’s decision to cancel the Christmas Day release of the film. Seventeen percent (17%) are not sure. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

Seventy-four percent (74%) have been following recent news reports about computer attacking attacks on a major Hollywood studio, with 37% who have been following Very Closely.

The more one is following the story, the more likely he or she is to disagree with Sony’s action. Among those who have been following the story Very Closely, 67% disagree with the decision to cancel the release of “The Interview.”

One-out-of-four (26%) of all Americans, in fact, say the news about the film makes them more likely to want to see it. Only 12% say the news makes them less likely to want to see “The Interview,” while 60% say it has no impact on their viewing decisions.

Seventy-two percent (72%) of Americans believe it is at least somewhat likely the computer attacks and threats of violence against Sony will lead to similar major attacks against other U.S. companies from other nations and business rivals in other countries. This includes 34% who say it is Very Likely. Twenty-one percent (21%) consider more corporate cyberattacks unlikely, but that includes only four percent who say they are Not At All Likely.

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The survey of 1,000 American Adults was conducted on December 18-19, 2014 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

Fifty-four percent (54%) of Americans think America’s increasing reliance on the Internet for business and financial transactions makes the economy more vulnerable to attack. 

Men (63%) disagree with Sony’s decision much more strongly than women (45%) do.

Adults under 40 are almost evenly divided, while most older Americans oppose the decision not to release the film. But younger adults are more likely to say the news about “The Interview” makes them want to see it.

Republicans believe more strongly than Democrats and those not affiliated with either major party that U.S. businesses can expect more cyberattacks from other nations and business rivals.

Eighty-three percent (83%) of Likely U.S. Voters are concerned about the safety of America’s computer infrastructure from cyberattack, and 57% believe a major cyberattack on the United States by another country should be viewed as an act of war. 

Most Americans say it’s more important for the United States to guarantee freedom of speech than it is to make sure that nothing is done to offend other nations and cultures.

Additional information from this survey and a full demographic breakdown are available to Platinum Members only.

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