WSJ Poll: Dim Views of Big Business, Government
May 22, 2012, 5:00 PM
By Colleen McCain Nelson
- Reuters
- Commuters pass by the Nasdaq Marketsite in New York on Monday.
The poll, which will be released in full at 6:30 p.m. ET Tuesday, asked voters to describe their level of confidence in a range of institutions, from the military to social networking websites. And while the military received the most positive assessment, with 76% of voters saying they had a “great deal” or “quite a bit” of confidence in the institution, many took a dim view of big business.
Those surveyed gave the lowest marks to Wall Street, with only 9% expressing a great deal or quite a bit of confidence. The financial industry and large corporations ranked near the bottom of the list as well. Only 12% of voters said they have a great deal or quite a bit of confidence in the financial industry, and large corporations won votes of confidence from 17% of those who responded.
At a time when much of the national political rhetoric is focused on the economy, the poll’s findings suggest a notable lack of confidence in large companies and the country’s financial institutions. Mitt Romney, the presumptive Republican nominee, has made his business experience the centerpiece of his presidential campaign, touting his time at the private equity firm Bain Capital. But that may not be a compelling argument to some, as the poll revealed a significant decline in confidence in the financial industry during recent years, with the percentage of voters who had a high level of confidence in that sector dropping from 36% in 2000 to 12% today.
Other institutions that received low marks from voters include health insurance companies, the entertainment industry, the national news media and the federal government, in line with weak showings in other surveys in recent years.
No entity came close to matching the positive feelings respondents expressed about the military, which was the only institution to earn strong votes of confidence from more than half of those surveyed. Also near the top of the list were the high-tech industry, with 47% of respondents saying they have a great deal or quite a bit of confidence in that sector, and the presidency, which earned high marks from 42% of voters.
Below are some of the categories polled.
Q: Now I’m going to list some institutions in American society, and I’d like you to tell me how much confidence you have in each one–a great deal, quite a bit, some, very little, or none at all?
| Institution | A Great Deal | Quite A Bit | Some | Very Little | None At All | Not Sure |
| The military | 54 | 22 | 17 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| The high-tech industry | 22 | 25 | 41 | 7 | 2 | 3 |
| The Presidency | 26 | 16 | 31 | 11 | 14 | 1 |
| The Supreme Court | 14 | 19 | 45 | 14 | 6 | 2 |
| The automobile industry | 11 | 17 | 53 | 10 | 6 | 3 |
| Religious leaders and organizations | 12 | 13 | 38 | 17 | 18 | 2 |
| Online social networking websites such as Facebook or LinkedIn | 10 | 9 | 29 | 18 | 23 | 11 |
| Large corporations | 7 | 10 | 37 | 26 | 18 | 2 |
| Federal government | 7 | 9 | 43 | 23 | 16 | 2 |
| National news media | 8 | 7 | 39 | 22 | 23 | 1 |
| Entertainment industry | 7 | 6 | 38 | 22 | 24 | 3 |
| Health insurance companies | 7 | 6 | 32 | 28 | 26 | 1 |
| Wall Street | 4 | 5 | 37 | 26 | 25 | 3 |
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