The Harris Poll Unveils TheHarrisPoll.com and the Harris Vault®

Over 40 Years of American Public Opinion Now Online and Easily Searchable

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May 06, 2015, 11:00 ET

NEW YORK, May 6, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- What do Americans think? Where do they stand on business or policy issues? How satisfied are they with politics, business and health? What entertains them across the vast landscape of entertainment, sports, travel and life? Has sentiment permanently shifted, or has the pendulum swung back again?

Begun in 1963 by iconic pollster, journalist, and author Lou Harris, The Harris Poll® is one of the longest running surveys measuring public opinion in the world. Now for the first time, media, researchers, pollsters, academics, and knowledge seekers everywhere can search and explore content from over 3,000 Harris Polls dating back to the early 1970s on TheHarrisPoll.com, a new, interactive website.

News You Can Use

A glance at the homepage will show what topics are trending now, as well as quick facts from top stories. Grouped by subject (Politics, Business, Sports, Life & Health), the polls on the new website feature easy links for sharing via social media. Visitors to the site can rate the polls and vote on whether America actually got it right. Keyword searches bring up instant results from The Harris Vault®, which houses archived content all the way back to the early 70s, making a simple task of researching where Americans once stood on an issue and where they stand now.

From the Archives

TheHarrisPoll.com offers a vast reservoir of American sentiments, both current and historical. We frequently ask Americans about their favorites and other "top" choices on a number of topics. In the past year we've asked Americans about their favorite…

Movie Star – Denzel Washington (not just this year, but for five years out of the past decade)
TV Personality – Ellen DeGeneres (for three years running)
Sports Star – LeBron James (beating out Michael Jordan)
Professional Sport – Football (for an astounding three decades)
Band or musical artist of all time – The Beatles (with The King himself, Elvis Presley, in second place)
Movie – Gone With the Wind (but the force is strong with Star Wars among men)
Baseball Team – The New York Yankees (for over a decade)
Dream Destination – Italy (the top destination Americans would choose for a vacation if cost weren't a factor)

The Harris Poll has looked at all corners of Americans' lives in recent years, including:

Love, marriage and the various outcomes which can follow:
- A majority of Americans believe the concept of marriage is less important today compared to previous generations; however, a strong majority also asserts that the concept of marriage is important to them personally.
- Americans still think a bride's father should give her away – but they're split on whether he should be stuck with the bill.
- When it comes to divorce – well, Americans aren't as OK with it as they think they are.
Tech, work and things we buy:
- A third of Americans believe self-driving cars represent the future of driving. A third also say they will never consider buying one!
- Two in ten Americans have made a career connection via social media.
- 70% of Americans trust major online retailers with their personally identified information, while only 40% trust the federal government.
- 87% of Americans feel food manufacturers are taking advantage of the Gluten Free "trend" to overcharge consumers, while 57% feel labeling food or other products as "organic" is just an excuse to charge more.

Capturing American Opinion

For the past 10 years, The Harris Poll released over 100 polls annually. Most Harris Polls are conducted online, in English, within the United States, among over 2,200 adults (aged 18 and over). Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income are weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population, making Harris Polls truly representative of America and all its diverse opinions.

To see over forty years of Harris Polls, visit their new home in the Harris Vault® on TheHarrisPoll.com.

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About The Harris Poll®

Begun in 1963, The Harris Poll is one of the longest running surveys measuring public opinion in the U.S. and is highly regarded throughout the world. The nationally representative polls, conducted primarily online, measure the knowledge, opinions, behaviors and motivations of the general public. New and trended polls on a wide variety of subjects including politics, the economy, healthcare, foreign affairs, science and technology, sports and entertainment, and lifestyles are published weekly. To see over forty years of Harris Polls, visit their new home in the Harris Vault® on TheHarrisPoll.com.

Press Contact:
Corporate Communications
The Harris Poll
585-272-8400
[email protected]

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SOURCE The Harris Poll