Pew Research Center
| Pew Research Center | |
 | |
| Basic facts | |
| Location: | Washington, D.C. |
| Type: | 501(c)(3) |
| Affiliation: | Nonpartisan |
| Top official: | Michael Dimock |
| Founder(s): | Andrew Kohut |
| Year founded: | 1990 |
| Website: | Official website |
| Budget | |
| 2014: | $39,966,998 |
Pew Research Center (PRC) is a nonpartisan, nonprofit 501(c)(3) think tank that conducts analytical studies and research to provide “information on issues, attitudes, and trends shaping America and the world.”[1] The organization is a subsidiary of Pew Charitable Trusts.[2] Pew Research Center originated in 1990 as a project of Times Mirror Newspaper company.[3] After Pew Charitable Trusts bought the rights to the project in 1996, PRC opened an office in Washington, D.C.[3]
The center prides itself on its "independence, objectivity, accuracy, rigor, humility, transparency and innovation."[4] The work of PRC (i.e. studies, polls and survey reports) is cited in many newspapers, including The Washington Post, The New York Times, Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times.
Mission
As a nonpartisan and non-advocacy group, the mission of PRC is “to inform, not to prescribe.” The founding charter of Pew Research Center reads as follows:[4]
| “ | Fact-based information is the fuel democracies run on—the raw material from which societies identify problems and construct solutions.[5] | ” |
To maintain credibility in the field of education, the organization has a code of ethics. These policies are listed below:[4]
- Separation from conflicts of interest
- Prohibitions on electioneering
- Integrity of research
History
Pew Research Center, founded in 1990 as the Times Mirror Center for the People & the Press, was initially a project of the Times Mirror newspaper company.[3] The group's primary focus was to conduct polls in politics and government issues. Andrew Kohut became the project’s director in 1993.[3] In 1996, Pew Charitable Trusts became the center’s sponsor, and the name of the project was changed to “Pew Research Center for the People & the Press.”[3] With the financial backing of Pew Charitable Trusts, the center opened its Washington, D.C., office in 2004.[3] Andrew Kohut, president of PRC from 2004 to 2013, was eventually named founding director.[3]
Policy scope
Analysts and researchers at PRC conduct studies and gather data for publication in the following areas:[6]
- U.S. politics and policy
- Journalism and media
- Internet, science and technology
- Religion and public life
- Hispanic trends
- Global attitudes and trends
- Social and demographic trends
Media
Unlike its sponsor, Pew Charitable Trusts, PRC does not plan large projects. Within their areas of study, staff writers conduct various studies and news reports. These investigations involve a hypothesis or question and a conclusion or answer. For each topic, data is publicized in various formats: U.S. politics publishes survey reports; media and news researchers primarily write analyses; social, Hispanic and technological trends' writers create blog posts and reports; global analysts conduct survey reports and commentary on current events.[6] In terms of topics on the website, PRC covers everything from Muslim-Western relations to student loans. The center attempts to update their topics on the basis of current trends and events. There are certain features that are universal across these pages. This work is unique to PRC:
Fact Tank
PRC utilizes this feature as "real-time analysis and news about data from Pew Research writers and social scientists."[7] Fact tank is self-proclaimed as "news in the numbers," relying solely on survey results for information.[7] This program relies on visual elements and hard data (i.e. survey reports and polls) to tell a news story. Fact Tank attempts to keep the journalists' opinions separate from the actual events of the stories. This feature appears on the right sidebar of the issue area pages on pewresearch.org.
Interactives
In addition to the available data and news on PRC's website, there are several available interactive elements, including data visualization, graphs, maps, quizzes, presentations, and videos. The variety of media allows the public to consume their news in different ways. Also, PRC attempts to remove any advocacy or partisan leanings in this program by constructing their own words around concrete evidence. These pages rely solely on visual elements to inform readers. These features apply to the seven issue areas listed above on the PRC website.
Leadership
PRC's top officials are separated into the executive office and the governing board. The president of PRC, Michael Dimock, is the only leader on both boards; however, he is a non-voting member on the governing board.[8] In addition, Michael Dimock represents Pew Research Center among Pew Charitable Trusts' officials. Listed below are the members of the PRC executive office and governing board, respectively:[8]
Executive Office
- Michael Dimock (President)
- James Bell (Vice President, Global Strategy)
- Claudia Deane (Vice President, Research)
- Elizabeth Mueller Gross (Vice President, Administration and Operations)
- Robyn Tomlin (Vice President, Digital and Communications)
Governing Board
- Donald Kimelman (Chairman)
- Jana Bennett
- Peter W. Bernstein
- Michael Delli Carpini
- Robert M. Groves
- Henry W. McGee
- James McMillan
- Robert Rosiello
- Michael Dimock (President, Pew Research Center)
Finances
Pew Research Center is largely funded by Pew Charitable Trusts.[9] Listed below are PRC's revenues and expenses for 2013 and 2014:
| Annual revenue and expenses for Pew Research Center, 2013-2014 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Tax Year | Total Revenue | Total Expenses |
| 2014[9] | $39,966,998 | $31,542,447 |
| 2013[9] | $33,434,184 | $30,590,925 |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Pew Research Center. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
- Pew Research Center home page
- Pew Charitable Trusts home page
- Pew Research Center on social media
Footnotes
- ↑ ‘’Pew Charitable Trusts,’’ “Financial Statements 2014,” accessed June 23, 2015
- ↑ Pew Research Center, “Our Funding,” accessed June 24, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 Pew Research Center, “Our History,” accessed June 24, 2015
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Pew Research Center, “Our Mission,” accessed June 24, 2015
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Pew Research Center, “Research Areas,” accessed June 24, 2015
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Pew Research Center, "Fact Tank,"accessed June 24, 2015
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Pew Research Center, "Leadership and Staff," accessed June 24, 2015
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Pew Research Center, "2014 IRS Form 990," accessed June 24, 2015
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