Toplines - Media Bias - October 10, 2008
National
Survey of 1,000 Likely Voters
Conducted October 10, 2008
By Rasmussen Reports
1* When covering a political
campaign, do most reporters try to offer unbiased coverage or do they try to
help the candidate they want to win?
23% Offer unbiased coverage
68% Try to help the candidate they want to win
10% Not sure
2* Think for a moment about the
three major presidential candidates this year. Which candidate received the
best treatment from the media so far—Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, or John
McCain?
61% Barack Obama
11% Hillary Clinton
14% John McCain
14% Not sure
3* Looking ahead to the campaign
between Barack Obama and John McCain, will most reporters try to help Barack
Obama, offer unbiased coverage, or try to help John McCain?
51% Try to help Barack Obama
28% Offer unbiased coverage
9% Try to help John McCain
13% Not sure
4* Suppose
a reporter learned some news that might politically hurt a candidate they
wanted to win. Would most reporters hide that information to help the
candidate?
44% Yes
33% No
23% Not sure
5* When it comes to information
about the Presidential campaign, who do you trust more—news reporters or family
and friends?
35% News reporters
44% Family and friends
22% Not sure
NOTE: Margin of Sampling Error, +/- 3
percentage points with a 95% level of confidence