Remember the old days of trying to have a conversation about race. Turns out blogging is not where Americans are turning:
About 1 in 4 of those surveyed say the office of the president has the best chance of fostering healthy public conversations (23%), while about 1 in 10 say pastors of local churches (11%) or university professors (10%). Members of the media (8%) faired slightly better than business leaders (7%) or members of Congress (6%). Few Americans look to professional athletes (1%) or musicians (less than 1%) to lead healthy conversations about the nation’s challenges.
The most common response: “None of these” (33%).
Among other findings:
Southerners are more likely to look to the president (25%) than those in the Midwest (18%).
Those in the Northeast choose the media (11%) more than those in the South (5%).
Younger Americans—those 18 to 34—look to the media (12%) more than those 65 and older (3%).
African-Americans are the most likely ethnic group to choose local pastors (21%) and the president (37%).
Hispanic Americans are the least likely ethnic group to choose the media (3%).
Christians are more likely to look to pastors (16%) than those from other faiths (1%) or those with no religious preference (2%).
Christians (7%) are less likely to look to professors than those from other faiths (18%) or those with no religious preference (15%).
Americans with evangelical beliefs have faith in pastors (36%) but little faith in the media (3%) or professors (3%) to guide such conversations.
A couple observations.
Notice bond between Southerners and African-Americans (are they they same?) — they trust the president more than other groups. Makes sense for blacks but what the heck did white southerners not learn from that excitement back in the 1860s?
Notice also Christians’ regard for professors. Maybe this explains the lack of Christian intellectuals. The more intellectual, the less trustworthy among the faithful.
Selah.
Old Life 
other interesting observations: the younguns’ haven’t wised up yet? 🙂 ;Catholics are less trusting of their faith leaders? the word ‘evangelical’ shouldn’t be so distained here?
-Those age 18-24 (18%) and 35-44 (14%) are more likely to select “Professors at universities” than those 25-34 (7%), 55-64 (6%), and 65+ (8%
-Protestant Christians (23%) are more likely to select “Pastors of local churches” than Catholics (7%)
-Those with Evangelical Beliefs (3%) are less likely to select “Professors at universities” than those without Evangelical Beliefs (11%)
Evangelical Beliefs: Those who strongly agree with all four statements:
-The Bible is the highest authority for what I believe
-It is very important for me personally to encourage non-Christians to trust Jesus Christ as their Savior
-Jesus Christ’s death on the cross is the only sacrifice that could remove the penalty of my sin
-Only those who trust in Jesus Christ alone as their Savior receive God’s free gift of eternal salvation
Click to access Sept-2016-American-Views-on-Healthy-Conversations.pdf
Note: the question was not generic trust but “Best position to generate/foster healthy conversation on challenges facing our society”
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This remind me of how shocked, astonished, flabbergasted, stupefied, demoralized, dejected, disgusted, dismayed and depressed the Evangelical #NeverTrumpers were when they found out that 81% of White Evangelicals decided not to be tricked, seduced, conned, and shamed into voting for Trump. Imagine that! White Evangelicals had the temerity to reject the advice of both Russell Moore and Jemar Tisby, Thabiti Anyabwile and Al Mohler, Christianity Today and The Gospel Coalition.
Election 2016 had one unexpected and pleasant side benefit: The exposure of “Christian Intellectuals” as untrustworthy allies in the fight for our precious Western Christendom and life as we know it. Oh how do they love their books, blogs, podcasts, columns, conferences, speeches, tweets, think tanks, declarations, speaking fees and tenured professorships but when the going got tough they ducked behind their #NeverTrump allies.
Alas! The “Christian Intellectual” is akin to a house pet – unable to survive in the naked wild or on the cold street. And now they find themselves not only ignored by the people they’re looking to impress (Secular Cultural Elites) but by the people they look down upon (White Evangelical Trump Voters).
A well deserved humiliation. Very Well Deserved.
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A white Southerner here: I am not sure why this is true of Southerners, but perhaps it serves to get one layer behind Southern trust of the POTUS. Southerners generally are loyal, courteous, respectful of authority, and patriotic. They have a very positive view of the military (and also the police). Whether this remains true today I do not know, but until very recently Southerners made up a disproportionately large percentage of the officer corps of the US Army. Military service is honorable, and it is an honorable family tradition for fathers and sons to become officers. Southerners show more respect for the Flag and are much less tolerant of those who deface the flag or otherwise disrespect it. Southerners are more pro-war. If their country goes to war, they are unlikely to spend much time reflecting on whether it is a just war and, unless they are college students, highly unlikely to take to the streets in protest. They take the attitude: “If our country is going to fight, then its ‘our country right or wrong’ and let’s get at it.” With regard to the President, I believe Southerners defer to the office and especially to the President’s role as Commander in Chief. They also respect the authority of the office. He’s the President; authority goes with the office; you respect authority. I don’t think this is because of the beat down of the War and Reconstruction. I think these are or were Southern traits that meant, for instance, that though the South still resented and resisted the defeat and its consequences, the South never lagged for support of the nation’s wars or doing more than its part to fight the wars. These older Southern traits, in my opinion, are going the way of all things, especially good things. It has taken a good long while, but the damn Yankees have finally won the War, and we are hardly distinguishable from them. We are fast becoming as reprehensible as they.
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Bill! Hey.
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Hey at all y’all.
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Archbp Manhattan is cool, knows it, is humbled by it, and cares about us dilberts. Archbp Canterbury is a dilbert, knows it, is appropriately humbled by it, and relates us to us dilberts.
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Thanks for clearing that up!
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