A tiny, shrinking percentage of American journalists are Republicans, study finds

A recent study found that a small fraction of American journalists are Republicans.

The study from Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Public Communications found that just 3.4% of American journalists identify as Republicans, with another 36.4% identifying as Democrats.

Based on an online survey of 1,600 U.S. journalists conducted in early 2022, the study is part of a series of research from over the years that examines journalists’ “perspective on the work, professional attitudes, and ethics,” according to the study.

The first-of-its-kind study, which made its debut in 1971, has witnessed a dramatic shift in the percentages of Republican and Democratic journalists over the years.

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The initial study from 52 years ago revealed that 35.5% of respondents said they were Democrats, 25.7% said they were Republicans and 32.5% said they were Independents. The percentage of people who refer to themselves as Democrats and independents has varied over the years, with those identifying as Democrats hitting a high of more than 44% in 1992.

The 2022 study showed an all-time high for those who are independents at more than 51%, up a point and half from the same study conducted in 2013.

As for those who identify as Republicans, the percentage total has slowly dwindled, with the only exception being a less than 2% increase between the 1992 and 2002 studies.

In 1982, 11 years after the first study was conducted, 18.8% of respondents said they were Republican, compared to 38.5% who said they were Democrats and 39.1% who said they were independents.

The 2013 study found that a little more than 7% of American journalists were Republicans, compared to 28.1% of Democrats at the time.

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The findings from the new study appear to show how out of touch some journalists may be with American voters, according to other polls released this year.

As for Americans overall, a November Gallup poll found that 29% consider themselves Democrats, 29% consider themselves Republicans, and 40% consider themselves independents.

A poll released earlier this year also found that nearly three-quarters of Americans believe the media is increasing polarization in the U.S. and that only 16% of adults have a “great deal” of trust and confidence in the news media.

The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights survey found that 74% of overall adults believed the news media was increasing the political divide in this country.

“Is the news media doing more to increase political divisions in the United States, decrease political divisions, or does it not have any impact?” the poll asked adults 18 years or older.

Nearly three-quarters responded with “increase/a lot,” 18% said the media had “no impact” and 6% responded that media decreased polarization “a little.”

Fox News’ Hanna Panreck contributed to this report.