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Religion & Politics 2012

News, analysis and data on the role of religion in politics, social issues, candidates and political parties relevant to the 2011-12 election season.

 

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ANALYSIS November 8, 2011
Presidential Preferences of Religious Groups: Early Polling
One year out from the presidential election, Romney and Perry had roughly equal support among registered Republican and Republican-leaning evangelicals, and both led Obama in a hypothetical matchup.
ANALYSIS February 24, 2011
Religion in the News: Islam Was No. 1 Topic in 2010
 Events and controversies related to Islam dominated U.S. press coverage of religion in 2010, bumping the Catholic Church from the top spot, according to a new study by the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism and the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.
ANALYSIS February 23, 2011
The Tea Party and Religion
A new analysis by the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life finds that Tea Party supporters tend to have conservative opinions not just about economic matters, but also about social issues such as abortion and same-sex marriage.
ANALYSIS November 3, 2010
Religion in the 2010 Elections: A Preliminary Look
A Pew Forum analysis of National Election Pool exit poll data reported by CNN shows that Republican gains among religious groups parallel the party’s broad-based gains among the overall electorate and white voters in particular.
ANALYSIS August 11, 2010
Much Hope, Modest Change for Democrats
An analysis of newly released 2008 exit poll data finds that while Barack Obama succeeded in attracting a larger share of the vote from some religious groups than John Kerry did in 2004, the large gaps in the electorate that had developed along religious lines in earlier elections persisted in 2008.
ANALYSIS June 11, 2010
The Pope Meets the Press: Media Coverage of the Clergy Abuse Scandal
Newspaper coverage of the Catholic clergy sexual abuse scandal grew more intense this spring than at any time since 2002, and European newspapers devoted even more ink to the story than American papers did, according to a new study by the Pew Research Center.
ANALYSIS March 25, 2010
Religion in the News: 2009
Pope Benedict XVI and the Obama administration generated the most religion-related coverage in the U.S. press in 2009. The pope, though he made no visits to the United States last year, was the subject of two of the top 10 religion stories, while the Obama administration accounted for three of the top 10 religion-focused storylines during the year.
ANALYSIS December 17, 2009
Little Support for Terrorism Among Muslim Americans
Recent events such as the Fort Hood shootings and the arrest of five Muslim American students in Pakistan have raised questions about the threat of homegrown terrorism in the U.S.  
ANALYSIS December 1, 2009
GOP Seen as Friendlier To Religion Than Democrats
The number of Americans describing the Democratic Party as friendly toward religion returned to levels similar to those seen in 2005 through 2007, according to a recent survey report. The Obama administration, however, is seen as friendly toward religion by more people (37%) than the Democratic Party as a whole (29%).
ANALYSIS November 19, 2009
Abortion Plays Small Role in Health Reform Opposition
While most Americans oppose government funding of abortion, a new Pew Research Center survey finds that concern about abortion funding plays only a small role in driving opposition to the health care reform legislation under consideration by Congress.
ANALYSIS November 18, 2009
Modest Rise in Concern About Islamic Extremism
The public continues to express concern about the rise of Islamic extremism in the United States and abroad, but a survey taken shortly after the deadly Nov. 5 shootings at the Fort Hood Army base shows only a modest increase in these concerns since 2007.
ANALYSIS November 16, 2009
Faith-Based Programs Still Popular, Less Visible
More than eight years after former President George W. Bush unveiled his faith-based initiative to make it easier for religious groups to receive government funding to provide social services, such as feeding the needy, the policy continues to draw broad public support.
ANALYSIS October 8, 2009
Religious Groups Weigh In on Health Care Reform
As the political battles over health care reform intensify, religious organizations are forcefully adding their voices to the debate.
ANALYSIS August 18, 2009
President Obama's Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships
This report provides a closer look at President Obama's Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, established to make recommendations on how to improve government partnerships with faith-based and community organizations.
ANALYSIS August 12, 2009
Media Coverage of the Faith-Based Initiative in the First Six Months of 2001 and 2009
A new study finds that Obama's faith-based initiative has so far generated little of the contentious press coverage associated with Bush's effort. And the program is not as closely associated with the current president as it was with the man he succeeded.
ANALYSIS July 9, 2009
A Contentious Debate: Same-Sex Marriage in the U.S.
In the last five years, the debate over gay marriage has been heard in the halls of the U.S. Congress, at the White House, in dozens of state legislatures and courtrooms, and in the rhetoric of election campaigns at both the national and state levels.
ANALYSIS May 14, 2009
Catholic Opinion on Notre Dame Controversy Differs by Church Attendance
A recent survey by the Pew Forum found that about half of American Catholics have heard at least a little about the controversy over the University of Notre Dame's decision to invite President Barack Obama to speak at the university's May 17 commencement and receive an honorary degree.
ANALYSIS May 7, 2009
The Torture Debate: A Closer Look
A web graphic published April 29, 2009, by the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life has generated a great deal of attention and interest. Religion is only one of many factors correlated with views on the justifiability of torture.
ANALYSIS April 29, 2009
The Religious Dimensions of the Torture Debate
An analysis by the Pew Forum of a new survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press illustrates differences in the views of four major religious traditions in the U.S. about whether torture of suspected terrorists can be justified.
ANALYSIS April 23, 2009
Religion in South Africa 15 Years After the End of Apartheid
Data from a 10-country survey of Pentecostals conducted by the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life in 2006 provides estimates of the religious affiliation of South Africa's urban population.
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