Gallup–Kettering Poll Links Heavy Social Media Use to Weaker Support for Democracy and More Acceptance of Political Violence

A newly released Gallup and Charles F. Kettering Foundation survey of 20,338 U.S. adults finds that Americans who spend five or more hours a day on social media are significantly less likely to say democracy is the best form of government and more likely to condone political violence. While about 72–73% of non‑users or light users (under an hour a day) rank democracy as the best system, that share drops to 57% among heavy users, who are nearly three times as likely (22% vs. 8%) to say it is sometimes acceptable to use violence to achieve political goals. Heavy users are also more inclined to treat facts as subjective (16% vs. 9%), yet they are more likely to feel their views are respected and to believe ordinary citizens can influence what happens in the country, underscoring social media’s double‑edged role in civic life. Overall, two‑thirds of Americans still say democracy is the best form of government and broadly endorse core democratic values, but the data point to a growing vulnerability among the most online segments of the population. The poll, conducted in mid‑2025 with a margin of error of about +/- 0.9 percentage points, adds quantitative backing to concern that always‑on social feeds are eroding shared reality and democratic norms in the very country that birthed most of these platforms.