In 2012, 40 percent of Americans didn’t vote. The research on this website is an attempt to determine why so many citizens opt out of this fundamental civic duty, using extensive survey research as well as interviews with nonvoters to give a voice to those who are often ignored or marginalized by politicians and the news media.
In addition to gaining a better understand of the attitudes of nonvoters, the research explores ways the news media could better engage nonvoters, which would increase the overall media usage and consumption.
The research by Professor Ellen Shearer and the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications dates to 1996.
On November 5, Bill Clinton or Bob Dole will be elected President of the United States. Assuming that the three-decade trend of declining voter turnout continues, their contest will be decided by roughly half of the eligible electorate. More than Continue reading
Poll results and Methodology for the 1996 Presidential election. 1996 Poll and Methodology (download pdf) 1996 Poll and Methodology (Scribd) Results of the Medill News Service/WTTW survey are based on telephone interviews conducted July 8 through July 21 with 3,323 Continue reading
Press Release Non Voters 96
By Michael M. Lazerow Medill News Service WASHINGTON – It’s not as if 49-year-old Nancy Koscher of Elkhart, Ind., doesn’t care about public affairs. The owner of a small carpet-installation business, Koscher was forced to drop her health benefits almost Continue reading
By Siobhan Hughes Medill News Service Gramby, N.Y. — Politicians are so dishonest and one man’s vote matters so little that it’s not worth voting, according to Richard Hobby, a 43-year-old electrician living in this upstate New York town of Continue reading
By Michael M. Lazerow Medill News Service OLYMPIA, Wash. — Thirty-one-year-old Kathy Smith pulled a hot tray loaded with homemade chocolate chip cookies from the oven. She placed each cookie on a napkin and passed them out to the small Continue reading