Public and Media Perceptions on Iraq Success Diverging

This article was comforting to read.

"Americans are discerning, through a maze of information sources, the truth about our status in Iraq. They see more success than the media is reporting," said Jerry C. Lindsley, director of the Sacred Heart University Polling Institute. He added, "They are especially disturbed that negative media reports damage U.S. troop morale."

Nearly three-quarters of all Americans surveyed, 70.7%, indicated they strongly or somewhat agreed that negative media reporting damages troop morale.

Over half of all survey respondents, 59.8%, agreed (strongly or somewhat) that negative media coverage damages prospects for success in Iraq because it encourages terrorists, and about half, 49.1%, agreed (strongly or somewhat) that things are likely going better for the U.S. than the U.S. media portrays.