The State of the First Amendment survey, conducted annually (since 1997, except for 1998) for the First Amendment Center by the Center for Survey Research and Analysis at the University of Connecticut, examines public attitudes toward freedom of speech, press, religion and the rights of assembly and petition. Core questions, asked each year, include awareness of First Amendment freedoms, overall assessments of whether there is too much or too little freedom of speech, press, and religion in the United States., levels of tolerance for various types of public expression (such as flag-burning and singing songs with potentially offensive lyrics), levels of tolerance for various journalistic behaviors, attitudes toward prayer in schools, and level of support for amending the Constitution to prohibit flag-burning or defacement. Additional (non-core) questions asked in the 2002 survey include attitudes toward media coverage of the "war on terrorism," whether the government has the right to monitor the activities of religious groups even if it means infringing upon religious freedoms, and levels of support for public access to various types of local government records.
- Data File
- Cases: 1,000
Variables: 61
Weight Variable: WGTAGE, WGTEDUC, WGTSEX, WGTCLAS, WEIGHT - Data Collection
- Date Collected: June 12 to July 5, 2002.
- Funded By
- Freedom Forum
American Journalism Review - Collection Procedures
- Computer-aided telephone interview surveys.
- Sampling Procedures
- The Center for Survey Research and Analysis at the University of Connecticut conducted a total of 1,000 telephone interviews with a random national sample of adults ages 18 and over, between June 12 and July 5, 2002.
- Principal Investigators
- Center for Survey Research and Analysis, University of Connecticut and the First Amendment Center.
