GALLUP NEWS SERVICE
PRINCETON, NJ - As America's news media returns to routine coverage after spending much of the past ten days devoted to the plane crash that killed John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife Carolyn, and her sister Lauren Bessette, here are a few key questions and answers about the media coverage and America's reaction to the Kennedy story.
Kennedy never held public office, but was obviously an
extremely well-known figure to Americans. How did his death affect
the average American?
In a Gallup poll conducted the weekend after the funerals (July
22-25), 19% of Americans said they were as upset about Kennedy's
death as if a member of their own family had died. Another 74% said
they were saddened, but not as upset as if it had been someone they
personally knew. By way of comparison, a Gallup poll conducted on
September 4, 1997, immediately after the death of Princess Diana in
a Paris traffic accident, found that 27% of Americans said her
death upset them as much as the death of someone they knew
personally -- a percentage that dropped to 15% nearly a year after
the crash.
Were there differences in the way different groups of
Americans reacted to the deaths?
Women were much more likely than men to say that they reacted to
Kennedy's death as if he were someone they knew personally, and
older Americans, particularly those 65 and above, were also much
more likely to have taken his death personally.
How closely did Americans follow the search for the plane and
the victims?
With all of the media coverage, it was hard for almost anyone to
miss the story completely. Thirty-nine percent of Americans told
Gallup interviewers they followed the story very closely, with
another 42% claiming they followed the news coverage "somewhat
closely." Gallup routinely asks this question about major news
events, and the percentage that followed the Kennedy story very
closely is among the highest in this decade. The death of Princess
Diana was followed "very closely" by 55% of Americans in a
September 1997 Gallup poll, and 53% followed the start of the 1991
Desert Storm ground war in Iraq very closely. The JFK Jr. tragedy
is third on this list, receiving more short-term attention from
Americans than the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal (33% in an August 1998
Gallup Poll), the Kosovo crisis (30%), and the 1997 death of Mother
Teresa (31%).
How did Americans evaluate the media coverage devoted to the
Kennedy story?
A majority of Americans -- 58% -- viewed the amount of media
coverage of the Kennedy story as excessive, while 40% thought the
amount of time devoted to the story was appropriate. Again, in
comparing the Kennedy story to the death of Princess Diana, more
Americans believed the media spent too much time on the Kennedy
tragedy. In the 1997 poll following Diana's death, 49% thought
there was too much coverage, while 48% thought the level of
coverage was appropriate.
However, the public gives the media high marks for the way it covered the Kennedy tragedy -- perhaps because of the way many media outlets tried to be respectful of the family's privacy. Nearly six out of ten Americans (57%) have a favorable opinion of the media's coverage of the Kennedy crash, while 39% have an unfavorable opinion. In addition, 75% of Americans believe the news media acted responsibly in its coverage, compared to 22% who consider the coverage irresponsible.
Survey Methods
The results below are based on telephone interviews with a randomly
selected national sample of 1,021 adults, 18 years and older,
conducted July 22-25, 1999. For results based on this sample, one
can say with 95 percent confidence that the maximum error
attributable to sampling and other random effects is plus or minus
3 percentage points. In addition to sampling error, question
wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can
introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion
polls.
How closely have you followed the news about the plane crash and death of John F. Kennedy Jr. and the Bessette sisters -- very closely, somewhat closely, not too closely, or not at all?
| Very closely | Somewhat closely | Not too closely | Not at all | No opinion | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 99 Jul 22-25 | 39% | 42% | 16% | 3% | *% |
| Princess Diana | |||||
| 97 Sep 6-7 | 55 | 30 | 11 | 3 | 1 |
How would you describe the reaction you had to John F. Kennedy Jr.'s death when you first heard about it -- were you as upset as if someone you knew personally had died, or were you sad, but not as upset as if it were someone you personally knew?
| Upset | Sad, but not Upset | NOT SAD (vol.) | No opinion | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 99 Jul 22-25 |
19% | 74% | 6% | 1% |
| Princess Diana | ||||
| 98 Aug 21-23 |
15 | 75 | 9 | 1 |
| 97 Sep 4 | 27 | 66 | 6 | 1 |
What is your opinion of the amount of news coverage given in the past week to the death of John F. Kennedy Jr. -- [ROTATE 1-2/2-1: 1) Has there been too much coverage (or) 2) Has the amount of coverage been appropriate (or)]?
| Too much coverage | Coverage appropriate | TOO LITTLE COVERAGE (vol.) | No opinion | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 99 Jul 22-25 | 58% | 40% | 1% | 1% |
| Princess Diana | ||||
| 97 Sep 6-7 | 49 | 48 | 1 | 2 |
From what you have seen, heard, or read about, do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion of the way in which the news media are covering the John F. Kennedy Jr. situation?
| Favorable | Unfavorable | No opinion | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 99 Jul 22-25 | 57% | 39% | 4% |
| 99 Apr 26-27** | 55 | 40 | 5 |
** Question Wording: "From what you have seen, heard, or read about, please tell me whether you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion of the way in which the news media is covering the Littleton situation?"
Overall, do you feel the news media have acted responsibly or irresponsibly in this situation?
| Responsibly | Irresponsibly | No opinion | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 99 Jul 22-25 | 75% | 22% | 3% |
| 99 Apr 26-27 | 67 | 29 | 4 |
* less than 0.5%
(vol.) volunteered response
