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Most Americans say they support torture – but do they mean it? Most Americans say they support torture – but do they mean it?
(5 months later)
According to a new poll, two out of every three American adults believe that torture against suspected terrorists can be justified. The survey is timely; it was conducted between 22 and 28 March, the same week that terrorist attacks took place in Brussels and the same week that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump claimed that torture might have effectively deterred those terrorists.According to a new poll, two out of every three American adults believe that torture against suspected terrorists can be justified. The survey is timely; it was conducted between 22 and 28 March, the same week that terrorist attacks took place in Brussels and the same week that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump claimed that torture might have effectively deterred those terrorists.
Related: Fact-check: is the media really to blame for Donald Trump?
The question, which was put to 1,976 adults in a survey by Ipsos and Reuters this week, asked if respondents felt that torture to obtain information about terrorism activities could be justified.The question, which was put to 1,976 adults in a survey by Ipsos and Reuters this week, asked if respondents felt that torture to obtain information about terrorism activities could be justified.
The results, however, should be read with some caution.The results, however, should be read with some caution.
At no point during the survey was the word torture defined. If respondents had been given specific torture techniques used by the US government – techniques such as rectal feeding or confinement in a box – their answers may have differed. Their responses might also have changed if they had been presented with a visual image of the torture that they were asked to consider.At no point during the survey was the word torture defined. If respondents had been given specific torture techniques used by the US government – techniques such as rectal feeding or confinement in a box – their answers may have differed. Their responses might also have changed if they had been presented with a visual image of the torture that they were asked to consider.
Questions like these also should not be treated in isolation, when they are part of a survey that asks a whole list of things. In this case, respondents were first asked whether they were aware of “the recent attacks at the airport and a metro station in Brussels” (78% said yes). Being reminded of brutal attacks that left 31 dead and 340 injured might alter the emotional state in which respondents answer subsequent questions.Questions like these also should not be treated in isolation, when they are part of a survey that asks a whole list of things. In this case, respondents were first asked whether they were aware of “the recent attacks at the airport and a metro station in Brussels” (78% said yes). Being reminded of brutal attacks that left 31 dead and 340 injured might alter the emotional state in which respondents answer subsequent questions.
Those subsequent questions were equally evocative. The survey asked whether people felt safe in a range of situations, such as “attending a concert”, “going to a movie or film”, “attending or running in a marathon”, “bars, restaurants or clubs” or “at your workplace”. Being asked to consider themselves in a range of everyday situations where widely reported, large-scale terrorist attacks have occurred might also heighten individuals’ anxiety.Those subsequent questions were equally evocative. The survey asked whether people felt safe in a range of situations, such as “attending a concert”, “going to a movie or film”, “attending or running in a marathon”, “bars, restaurants or clubs” or “at your workplace”. Being asked to consider themselves in a range of everyday situations where widely reported, large-scale terrorist attacks have occurred might also heighten individuals’ anxiety.
It’s also worth pointing out that any poll has a margin of error – in this case plus or minus 2.5 percentage points (pp) for all respondents, 3.9 pp for Democrats and 4.2 pp for Republicans.It’s also worth pointing out that any poll has a margin of error – in this case plus or minus 2.5 percentage points (pp) for all respondents, 3.9 pp for Democrats and 4.2 pp for Republicans.
But that’s not to say that these results don’t reflect real attitudes that exist in the United States – they do suggest widespread support for torture.But that’s not to say that these results don’t reflect real attitudes that exist in the United States – they do suggest widespread support for torture.
Other surveys offer some clues as to why. A Pew poll in 2014 found that 56% of Americans say the CIA’s interrogation methods after 9/11 “provided intelligence that helped prevent terrorist attacks” – only 28% disagreed. Those results seem reliable since they echo a CBS News poll (57% said torture could help prevent terrorist attacks) and also a Washington Post-ABC News poll (53% said the CIA’s interrogation did “produce important information that could not have been obtained any other way”).Other surveys offer some clues as to why. A Pew poll in 2014 found that 56% of Americans say the CIA’s interrogation methods after 9/11 “provided intelligence that helped prevent terrorist attacks” – only 28% disagreed. Those results seem reliable since they echo a CBS News poll (57% said torture could help prevent terrorist attacks) and also a Washington Post-ABC News poll (53% said the CIA’s interrogation did “produce important information that could not have been obtained any other way”).
In other words, Trump is voicing a belief held by many Americans that torture works.In other words, Trump is voicing a belief held by many Americans that torture works.
In 2014 a Senate intelligence committee report on CIA torture concluded that the agency’s “enhanced interrogation techniques” were not an effective means of acquiring intelligence or gaining cooperation from detainees.In 2014 a Senate intelligence committee report on CIA torture concluded that the agency’s “enhanced interrogation techniques” were not an effective means of acquiring intelligence or gaining cooperation from detainees.