A new Pew Research Center study has found that Americans are deeply divided along partisan lines over whether the news media is less free under President Donald Trump. According to the survey released Tuesday, 44% of all U.S. adults say the press is less free under the current administration, but that overall figure masks a stark gap between the parties.
Among Democrats, 72% say the press is less free under Trump, while only 15% of Republicans agree. The findings underscore how perceptions of the news media have become entangled with political identity, even as Trump has maintained an antagonistic posture toward mainstream news organizations across both of his terms.
The Pew study did not offer a single explanation for the divide, but the results arrive amid a broader period of tension between the White House and the press. Trump has repeatedly criticized major outlets, and his administration has taken actions that press freedom advocates have flagged as concerning. The survey suggests that those concerns are felt overwhelmingly on one side of the political spectrum.
The partisan gap is not entirely surprising given years of declining trust in media among Republicans and rising concern among Democrats about democratic backsliding. But the size of the difference — a 57-point spread — is notable. It suggests that views on press freedom are now shaped less by direct experience with journalism than by partisan cues and attitudes toward Trump himself.
Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that regularly surveys public opinion on media, politics, and society. Its findings are widely cited by news organizations, academics, and policymakers. The new study adds to a growing body of research showing that Americans increasingly inhabit separate information worlds, with different sets of facts and different assessments of the same institutions.
The survey comes as the Kennedy Center, a prominent performing arts venue in Washington, D.C., has become the center of a separate controversy involving Trump. A federal judge recently blocked an effort to add Trump's name to the center's facade, and the Trump-backed board subsequently voted to close the main complex immediately, citing needed renovations. Trump said no renovations would take place unless his name was restored to the building.
While that dispute is distinct from the Pew survey, it illustrates the broader cultural and political battles over institutions that have unfolded during Trump's presidency. The Kennedy Center episode has drawn attention from entertainment and media observers, who see it as another front in the ongoing conflict over symbols, branding, and control of public spaces.
For the press, the Pew numbers may serve as a reminder that public confidence in journalism remains fragile and unevenly distributed. News organizations have faced years of attacks from political figures, economic disruption, and shifting audience habits. The finding that nearly three-quarters of Democrats believe the press is less free under Trump suggests that concern about media independence has become a core Democratic belief.
At the same time, the low share of Republicans who share that view indicates that many conservative Americans either do not see Trump as a threat to press freedom or believe the media is powerful enough to withstand political pressure. That disconnect could complicate efforts to build broad coalitions around press freedom legislation or norms.
The Pew study was released Tuesday and is based on a national survey of U.S. adults. Its results are likely to be cited in ongoing debates over media regulation, disinformation, and the role of a free press in a polarized democracy.