Much less hears about the administration’s relationship with the media than in early Trump’s first term.
How did you do this
The Pew Research Center conducted the study to track how Americans are paying attention to news about the new Trump administration. For many years, we have sought adults for their opinions and habits related to news about elections, presidential administrations and policy developments. The study builds on work done up to the 2024 election and research from early stages of the Trump and Biden administrations in both 2017 and 2021.
To do this, we surveyed 5,123 adults from February 24th to March 2nd, 2025. Those who participated in this survey were members of the Center’s American Trends Panel (ATP). This type of recruitment gives almost every US adult a chance to choose. Interviews were conducted online or via telephone with live interviewers. The survey is weighted to represent the adult US population by gender, race, ethnicity, partisan affiliation, education and other factors. Read more about ATP methodology.
Here are the questions, answers and methodologies used in this report.
The second Trump administration began with a rapid succession of executive orders and policy changes, including tariffs and government cuts. Americans are paying attention, but Democrats and Republicans have given various reasons why they are coordinating, according to a new Pew Research Center survey conducted from late February to early March.
As the president and his allies move to restructure federal and US foreign policy, about seven US adults say they are very (31%) or fairly (40%) intimately going on about the actions and initiatives of the Trump administration.
That’s roughly the same share as saying they followed news about the presidential election last September (69%), slightly higher than the percentage who said they were following the news about the new Biden administration’s actions and initiatives (66%) in 2021. Also, there is a gap between the early days of Biden’s presidency when it comes to shares that follow management news very closely (31% vs. 22%).
Both partisan coalitions pay attention to administrative actions and initiatives at similar speeds. This differs from the first months of the Biden administration in 2021, when Republicans and Republican-leaning independents were less likely to say they were following the Biden administration’s actions very or rather closely than the Democrats and Democrat Leaners (60% of Republicans vs. 75% of Democrats).
Currently, 74% of Republicans and 71% of Democrats say they are following the actions of the Trump administration at least fairly closely.
Four Americans say they are paying more attention to political news than before Trump took office, but only 10% say they are not paying attention.
Democrats are more likely to say they are paying more attention than Republicans (44% vs. 37%) and less attention than they are before they take office (15% vs. 5%). Republicans, on the other hand, tend to say their attention is stable.
Why Americans Follow or Don’t Follow the News About the Trump Administration
In this survey, 71% of Americans said they were following news about the Trump administration and asked very or rather closely why they were doing this. Respondents were given a list of five possible reasons why they may be tracking what Trump is doing, each showing whether it is a major reason, a small reason or a total reason.
The most common reason is concern and association.
Approximately two-thirds of the US adults in this group (66%) say they are “worried about what the administration is doing.” And about six sixths (62%) say it’s a big reason for its connection to their lives.
Small stocks cite three other potential factors as the main reasons to follow news about the Trump administration.
Because they like what the administration is doing (36%) or because it’s difficult to avoid something interesting or interesting (25%) that is interesting (43%).
Among the smaller share of Americans who have not closely followed the news about their administration, the most common reasons to adjust are fatigue and lack of interest in politics.
The main reason for this is that about half of the things they’re exhausted with the volume of news (49%) or they don’t follow the usual political news (48%). About a third say they are coordinated because they don’t like what the administration is doing (34%). The reason for a few is that news about the Trump administration is not relevant to their lives (15%) or that they trust the administration to make good decisions (13%).
Reasons due to the party
Among American adults who are closely following news about the Trump administration’s actions and initiatives, the same share of Democrats and Republicans (62% each) says that their personal connections to their lives are the main reason they do so. However, for other reasons, there is a considerable gap between the two parties.
While Democrats are much more likely to be concerned about what the administration is doing, a major factor in why they follow the news about it (88%) (88%), almost half of Republicans also cite concerns about the administration’s activities as the main reason for paying attention to the news (45%).
At the same time, most Republicans (64%) say the main reason they follow the news is that they like what the administration is doing, compared to just 8% of Democrats.
It’s likely that Democrats are saying they’re keeping up with the news. They say that there are more Republicans than Democrats because it’s difficult to avoid, because the news is interesting.
Republicans respond differently to these questions based on ideology. Republicans who describe themselves as conservatives are far more likely to say that the approval of what the administration is doing is the main reason they follow the news (75% vs. 41%). And conservative Republicans are less likely than moderate counterparts who cite concerns about what Trump is doing as the main reason to follow the White House actions (42% vs. 53%).
Approximately a quarter (27%) of Republicans following the news show both reasons. They like what the administration is doing and are worried about what the administration is doing.
Republicans and Democrats also have a variety of reasons to not follow news about the Trump administration.
Among Americans who don’t closely follow the administration’s actions, Democrats are far more likely than Republicans to say key reasons, and they don’t like what the administration is doing (57% vs. 9%). Democrats also tend to say they are exhausted by the amount of news about the administration (60% vs. 37%).
The most common reason among Republicans who are not involved in this news is that they don’t normally follow politics (55%).
Views on the Trump administration’s relationship with news media
A much smaller share of Americans says he heard about Donald Trump’s second term’s relationship with the media compared to his first.
In March 2017, nearly three-quarters of Americans (72%) said they had heard a lot about the Trump administration’s relationship with the US news media. As of this year’s survey conducted from February 24 to February 24, half of that share (36%) said they have heard a lot about the relationship, while 44% said they have heard a bit. Still, about five Americans (19%) say they have heard nothing about the relationship from 6% in 2017.
Before the investigation was conducted, there were already some recent tensions between the Trump administration and news outlets, including CBS News, the Des Moines Register and the Associated Press.
And while the investigation was underway, the administration announced that the White House correspondents association would not have made these choices, but that which outlets are part of the White House press pool.
Both Republicans and Democrats are unlikely to say they have heard of the relationship more than they did eight years ago. In 2017, a similar majority of Republicans (74%) and Democrats (72%) heard a lot about Trump’s relationship with the media. In 2025, far fewer stocks of Republicans (35%) and Democrats (40%) say this.
Young people are unlikely to have heard much about this relationship, reflecting a general pattern of attention to the news. Three US adults under the age of 50 hear more about it, compared to 44% of people over the age of 50.
Most Americans say Trump and the media have a bad relationship
There is a broad belief among Americans that the relationship between the Trump administration and the US news media is bad. 64% of US adults say they have a bad relationship, while only 11% say they’re good. 22% say the relationship is neutral.
The view that Trump and the media have a bad relationship is widely held by both parties. 61% of Republicans and 67% of Democrats say this.
However, there are severe differences in how the parties assess the media’s role in Trump and the relationship.
Democrats are far more likely to say the Trump administration is too critical of the news media. This is what Ten In Ten Democrats say. Republicans are far more likely to say the administration is pretty much fair to the media (46% vs. 12%) or not very critical (29% vs. 16%). Meanwhile, Republicans are likely to say that the media is too critical of Trump. About seven Republicans say this (69%), while only 12% of Democrats agree. Instead, about six Democrats (62%) say the media wasn’t important enough to Trump, but only one Republican said this.
Overall, similar stocks in Americans say that the US news media are too critical of the Trump administration (39%) and they were not critical enough (36%).
But the share of American adults who say the Trump administration is too critical of the media is almost twice the share that the administration says it wasn’t important enough (46% vs. 22%).
