March 18, 2008
SOC grad students examine young voters’ preferences
With fears of a recession mounting, 67 percent of young voters in the battleground states of Ohio, Florida, Colorado, and Virginia say the economy is the most important issue in the upcoming presidential election, according to a new survey conducted by graduate students in the School of Communication (SOC).
Among the 128 respondents, ages 18 to 29, the Iraq war was the second most pressing issue (64 percent), followed by health care (46 percent), the environment (37 percent), illegal immigration (34 percent), and abortion (30 percent). The results of the online survey—created by 19 students in SOC professor Jane Hall’s Washington Reporting class—were published Mar. 3 on washingtonpost.com.
“On the day that it was posted, it was the most viewed story on the Washington Post politics page. The Obama blog linked to it, as did some other people,” said Hall. “It was a huge thrill for the students.”
“It was exciting that our ideas and our projects were things that the Post wanted to publish. It was good confirmation that what we are doing is good enough to be published, especially in a publication with a reputation like that of the Washington Post,” said student Caitlin Lukacs.
The students enlisted the help of Dotty Lynch, SOC executive in residence and political consultant for CBS News, and Maria Ivancin, public communication professor and survey research expert, as well as members of Hall’s undergraduate class, to design and distribute the 44-question survey. After compiling the results, the students wrote a series of articles, entitled “Youth Vote ’08: A Millennial Take on Election 2008 from Four Battleground States,” which also appeared on the Washington Post’s Web site.
The project is similar to one undertaken by SOC students last fall and also published at
washingtonpost.com. That survey focused on 100 college students’ opinions on the 2008 election.
This term, in addition to conducting a survey, students wrote, edited, and created graphics for a news magazine package. “They knew they had to put together something good enough to pass muster and be published in the Washington Post,” said Hall.
Elizabeth Anderson, who worked as a project writer and reporter, particularly enjoyed choosing quotes from respondents.
“Some of them were hilarious,” she said. “If I remember correctly, one person said Ronald Reagan would be the best Republican presidential candidate. My first thought was: ‘This respondent must think times are rough if he wants to pull Reagan from his final retirement.’”
According to the survey, respondents’ primary economic concerns focused on student loans. They also cited apprehension about the slowing job market and the rising cost of living. Nearly half said they probably won’t be able to afford a home in the next five years, and 61 percent said that politicians aren’t paying enough attention to economic issues facing young voters, including ever-increasing tuition costs.
“The economy is the most important issue because things do not seem to be getting any better. In fact, they appear to be getting worse,” said Teresa Cummings, a respondent from Colorado. “If we do not have jobs that pay us a decent wage, how can we buy $3 gas, pay increases in rent that are sure to happen, or pay off loans from school?”
Nearly all survey respondents—97 percent—said they plan to vote in the November election. Were the election held today, Barack Obama would garner 54 percent of the vote, followed by John McCain (18 percent), and Hillary Clinton (10 percent).
“Though the respondents overwhelmingly went for Obama, a number of them said that they admired John McCain’s story, and that they might vote for McCain if Clinton wins the Democratic nomination,” said Hall. “I found that particularly interesting.”
Hall, who worked closely with Jim Brady ’89, executive editor and vice president, washingtonpost.com, and Russ Walker, assistant managing editor, washingtonpost.com, to facilitate the project, said she hopes to conduct another survey in the fall, related to the general election.
“It’s a chance for students to work on something that’s real and challenging, and published in one of the best newspapers in the country,” she said. “I believe strongly in trying to create these sort of opportunities for our students.”
Added student Eun Kang: “I was very excited to see my byline on the Washington Post Web site. It definitely doesn’t hurt to point out that you were published by the Post when you’re trying to [find] a job!”
