{"id":11756,"date":"2017-09-27T07:00:19","date_gmt":"2017-09-27T12:00:19","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2025-04-23T23:57:58","modified_gmt":"2025-04-24T03:57:58","slug":"most-americans-think-the-government-could-be-monitoring-their-phone-calls-and-emails","status":"publish","type":"short-read","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2017\/09\/27\/most-americans-think-the-government-could-be-monitoring-their-phone-calls-and-emails\/","title":{"rendered":"Most Americans think the government could be monitoring their phone calls and emails"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright\"><a class=\"image-box\" href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2017\/09\/27\/most-americans-think-the-government-could-be-monitoring-their-phone-calls-and-emails\/ft_17-09-27_surveillance_youngeramericans-png\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-22618\"><img data-dominant-color=\"d4dbe5\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #d4dbe5;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"310\" height=\"632\"  srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2017\/09\/FT_17.09.27_Surveillance_YoungerAmericans.png?resize=310,632 310w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 480px) 480px, (max-width: 782px) 782px, 640px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2017\/09\/FT_17.09.27_Surveillance_YoungerAmericans.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-22618 not-transparent\" \/><\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Seven-in-ten U.S. adults say it is at least somewhat likely that their own phone calls and emails are being monitored by the government, including 37% who believe that this type of surveillance is \u201cvery likely,\u201d according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted in February.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Just 13% of the public say it is \u201cnot at all likely\u201d that the government is monitoring their communications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These views are prevalent across a number of different demographic groups, but there are some differences based on age, gender and education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Most notably, nearly eight-in-ten&nbsp;<span class=\"s1\">U.S. adults under the age of 50&nbsp;<\/span>think it is likely that the government is tracking their communications, compared with around six-in-ten of those 50 and older.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Additionally, men are more likely than women to suspect government monitoring, as are those with a high school degree or less compared with people who have a college degree or higher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Americans across the political spectrum are equally likely to think the government is monitoring their phone calls or emails. Seven-in-ten Republicans (including independents who lean toward the Republican Party) say this, the same share as among Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But while many Americans assume that the government is monitoring their personal communications, they have expressed discomfort with this activity in the past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright\"><a class=\"image-box\" href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2017\/09\/27\/most-americans-think-the-government-could-be-monitoring-their-phone-calls-and-emails\/ft_17-09-27_surveillance_mostamericans-png\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-22614\"><img data-dominant-color=\"dfe3e8\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #dfe3e8;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"310\" height=\"396\"  srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2017\/09\/FT_17.09.27_Surveillance_MostAmericans.png?resize=310,396 310w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 480px) 480px, (max-width: 782px) 782px, 640px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2017\/09\/FT_17.09.27_Surveillance_MostAmericans.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-22614 not-transparent\" \/><\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/internet\/2015\/03\/16\/americans-views-on-government-surveillance-programs\/\">2015 Pew Research Center survey<\/a> found that nearly six-in-ten Americans (57%) believe it is unacceptable for the government to monitor the communications of American citizens. But the survey found that around half of Americans say it <em>is<\/em> acceptable for the U.S. government to monitor the communications of citizens of other countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Similarly, in a <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/politics\/2014\/06\/26\/section-6-foreign-affairs-terrorism-and-privacy\/#views-of-privacy-nsa-surveillance\">survey conducted in 2014<\/a>, a slight majority of Americans (54%) said they disapproved of the government\u2019s collection of telephone and internet data as a part of anti-terrorism efforts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Seven-in-ten U.S. adults say it is it likely that their own phone calls and emails are being monitored by the 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