January 1, Most Americans believe rampant misinformation is a problem: poll

A new poll from The Pearson Institute and AP/NORC finds that almost all Americans agree that the rampant spread of misinformation is a problem and that social media platforms are mostly the cause.

A majority of 95 percent of respondents said that misinformation is an issue when trying to access important information. Roughly half blamed the US government, and about three-quarters blamed social media and tech companies.

There was a bipartisan difference among those who blame the government for the spread of misinformation. The poll found that 61 percent of Republicans say the government bears the brunt of responsibility for spreading misinformation, compared with 38 percent of Democrats.

“The AP-NORC poll is bad news for Facebook,” said Konstantin Sonin, a professor of public policy at the University of Chicago. “It makes clear that assaulting Facebook is popular by a large margin — even when Congress is split 50-50, and each side has its own reasons.”

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Americans agree misinformation is a problem, poll shows