The US public opinion on support for Israel’s military actions against Gaza is not as one-sided as media portrays it to be.
I decided to test the American public using Google Consumer Surveys, a very reliable online polling tool from Google, and focused on two questions that CNN asked in its survey. CNN has touted these results as overwhelming support for Israel, though the winds are changing, and “favorable opinions of Israel have edged down since earlier this year.”
But the Google Consumer Survey results tell a different story–and it’s eye-opening, to say the least.
The first survey results are here, the second are here.
One: most Americans don’t care one way or the other, or don’t know enough about it. If you know anything about the history of American world literacy, this is not surprising.
Two: Of the people who do care, there is a virtual dead heat between Americans who think Israel’s actions in Gaza are justified versus those who think otherwise.
Third: Millennials overwhelmingly think the actions are unjustified.
Fourth: Regarding the second question, concerning the amount of military force Israel has used in Gaza, a majority of Americans who have an opinion about it think it is too much.
Fifth: Younger Americans generally think the use of force is excessive.
So there you go. The American public’s perception is changing, but is anyone listening?
The two single-question survey were administered to the US online population from July 21-23 and July 24-25 respectively, through Google Consumer Surveys, with 1096 responses (weighted down to 666) and 500 responses respectively. The methodology is explained here.
This post originally appeared on Rafat’s blog. You can follow Rafat on Twitter @Rafat.