How much do Americans know about the First Amendment?

About this research This report from the Pew-Knight Initiative looks at how Americans think about freedom of the press, as well as the related First Amendment concept of freedom of speech, in the United States today. Why we did this Pew Research Center has asked about press freedom and free speech both domestically and globally for the past decade. The topic has become especially relevant amid the changing media environment and the evolving concept of “the press”; the growing role of technology companies as gatekeepers to news and information; and President Donald Trump’s tense relationship with the news media, which has led some groups and individuals to raise concerns about whether press freedom is being restricted. It is a good time to take a fresh look at Americans’ views on press freedom in the U.S. – how they define it, what they think about its status and how they weigh it against other ongoing challenges in the news environment. Learn more about Pew Research Center and our research on news habits and media. How we did this We surveyed 3,507 U.S. adults from March 23 to 29, 2026, and 3,488 U.S. adults from June 22 to 28, 2026. Everyone who took part in these surveys is a member of the Center’s American Trends Panel. The surveys represent the views of the full U.S. adult population. We also conducted 10 online focus group discussions led by SSRS with 74 U.S. adults, held from May 20 to June 4, 2026. These discussions do not represent the entire U.S. population. This report shares findings and quotes from the focus groups to help illustrate and add detail to the survey results. Quotes were lightly edited for spelling, punctuation and clarity. Here are the survey questions used for this report, the detailed responses and the methodology. This is a Pew Research Center report from the Pew-Knight Initiative, a research program funded jointly by The Pew Charitable Trusts and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Find related reports online at https://www.pewresearch.org/pew-knight/. Before reading further: Take the quiz to see how much you know about the First Amendment and how you compare to U.S. adults. The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects several fundamental rights, including freedom of the press and free speech. To understand what U.S. adults know about the First Amendment – and press freedom in particular – we asked eight multiple-choice factual questions about what it does and does not protect. This is part of a broader Pew Research Center study from the Pew-Knight Initiative exploring U.S. adults’ views of press freedom today. Read key findings from the full study, which included two surveys of U.S. adults and a series of 10 focus groups. About half of U.S. adults (51%) correctly identified that the First Amendment guarantees freedom of the press. Roughly a quarter (26%) incorrectly said it protects “the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” – a phrase from the Declaration of Independence – and 9% chose the right to bear arms, which is protected by the Second Amendment. About half of Americans correctly answer that the First Amendment guarantees freedom of the press Note: Correct answers are highlighted and in bold. “Not sure” appeared at the bottom of each option set. All questions were multiple choice. For full question wording, refer to the topline. Respondents who did not answer are not shown. Source: Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults conducted March 23-29, 2026. “Americans Value Press Freedom but Differ on Its Limits” PEW-KNIGHT INITIATIVE About half of Americans correctly answer that the First Amendment guarantees freedom of the press Answer% answer% who answer the question correctlyWhich of the following is guaranteed by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution?The right to bear arms951Freedom to own property1The right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness26Freedom of the press (correct answer)51Not sure12Is it legal or not legal for social media companies to restrict content posted on their sites or apps?Legal (correct answer)6060Not legal13Not sure27Can the U.S. government legally force social media companies to remove false information posted on their sites?Yes2537No (correct answer)37Not sure37Does the U.S. Constitution protect the press from interference by the U.S. government?Yes (correct answer)5858No14Not sure27Does the U.S. Constitution protect the press from interference by private companies?Yes2933No (correct answer)33Not sure37Are information or opinions published by news organizations protected by the First Amendment?Yes (correct answer)7070No7Not sure22Are information or opinions expressed by influencers or creators protected by the First Amendment?Yes (correct answer)6464No10Not sure25Are information or opinions expressed by ordinary people protected by the First Amendment?Yes (correct answer)7171No8Not sure19 Note: Correct answers are highlighted and in bold. “Not sure” appeared at the bottom of each option set. All questions were multiple choice. For full question wording, refer to the topline. Respondents who did not answer are not shown. Source: Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults conducted March 23-29, 2026. “Americans Value Press Freedom but Differ on Its Limits” PEW-KNIGHT INITIATIVE Public knowledge varies widely on other questions. Overall, people were more likely to know who is protected by the First Amendment, and less likely to know how it applies to social media and private companies. College graduates and men answer more questions correctly about First Amendment protections Average number of correct answers out of eight First Amendment knowledge questions Note: All questions were multiple choice. For a list of the questions, refer to the topline. Source: Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults conducted March 23-29, 2026. “Americans Value Press Freedom but Differ on Its Limits” PEW-KNIGHT INITIATIVE College graduates and men answer more questions correctly about First Amendment protections Average number of correct answers out of eight First Amendment knowledge questions GroupAverage number of correct answersAll U.S. adultsgroup 14.5Mengroup 25.1Womengroup 23.9Ages 18-29group 34.630-49group 34.450-64group 34.565+group 34.3College+group 45.2Some collegegroup 44.6HS or lessgroup 43.6Cons Rep/Lean Repgroup 54.8Mod/Lib Rep/Lean Repgroup 53.9Cons/Mod Dem/Lean Demgroup 54.2Lib Dem/Lean Demgroup 55.4 Note: All questions were multiple choice. For a list of the questions, refer to the topline. Source: Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults conducted March 23-29, 2026. “Americans Value Press Freedom but Differ on Its Limits” PEW-KNIGHT INITIATIVE For example, about seven-in-ten Americans correctly answered that the First Amendment protects information and opinions both published by news organizations (70%) and expressed by ordinary people (71%). But well below half correctly said that the government cannot legally force social media companies to remove false information (37%), and that the Constitution does not protect the press from interference by private companies (33%). On average, some groups were more likely to answer a higher number of these questions correctly, including: College graduates Liberal Democrats and, to a lesser degree, conservative Republicans (compared with others who identify with or lean toward either party, including moderates) Men Research has long shown that when answering knowledge questions, women are more likely than men to say they don’t know the answer rather than to take a guess if they are uncertain. Consistent with this pattern, we find “don’t know” responses in this survey are 5 to 16 percentage points higher among women than men depending on the question. Few age differences in knowledge of First Amendment protections Older and younger Americans have similar levels of First Amendment knowledge % of U.S. adults who answered each question correctly Note: All questions were multiple choice. For a list of the questions, refer to the topline. Source: Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults conducted March 23-29, 2026. “Americans Value Press Freedom but Differ on Its Limits” PEW-KNIGHT INITIATIVE Older and younger Americans have similar levels of First Amendment knowledge % of U.S. adults who answered each question correctly Ages 18-2930-4950-6465+First Amendment protects info and opinions expressed by ordinary people70687475First Amendment protects info and opinions expressed by influencers68656460First Amendment protects info and opinions published by news organizations67687473Social media companies can legally restrict content on sites63616154U.S. Constitution protects press from interference by government58545963First Amendment guarantees freedom of the press57525244Government can’t legally force social media companies to remove false information37393935U.S. Constitution does not protect press from interference by private companies36373128 Note: All questions were multiple choice. For a list of the questions, refer to the topline. Source: Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults conducted March 23-29, 2026. “Americans Value Press Freedom but Differ on Its Limits” PEW-KNIGHT INITIATIVE Overall, we find no consistent age differences when it comes to knowledge of First Amendment protections. Younger and older Americans were about equally likely to get most of the questions right. The biggest exception is the question about which right is guaranteed by the First Amendment. Adults ages 18 to 29 were the most likely age group to answer correctly that the First Amendment protects freedom of the press (57%), while adults 65 and older were the least likely (44%). Similar shares of Republicans, Democrats correctly answer factual questions about freedom of the press Republicans and Democrats (including independents who lean toward each party) gave correct answers to factual questions about the First Amendment at similar rates. Few party differences in First Amendment knowledge % of U.S. adults who answered each question correctly Note: All questions were multiple choice. For a list of the questions, refer to the topline. Source: Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults conducted March 23-29, 2026. “Americans Value Press Freedom but Differ on Its Limits” PEW-KNIGHT INITIATIVE Few party differences in First Amendment knowledge % of U.S. adults who answered each question correctly Rep/Lean RepDem/Lean DemFirst Amendment protects info and opinions expressed by ordinary people7175First Amendment protects info and opinions published by news organizations6974First Amendment protects info and opinions expressed by influencers6467Social media companies can legally restrict content on sites6162U.S. Constitution protects press from interference by government5763First Amendment guarantees freedom of the press5253Government can’t legally force social media companies to remove false information3740U.S. Constitution does not protect press from interference by private companies3236 Note: All questions were multiple choice. For a list of the questions, refer to the topline. Source: Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults conducted March 23-29, 2026. “Americans Value Press Freedom but Differ on Its Limits” PEW-KNIGHT INITIATIVE About one-in-ten among each group answered all questions correctly (10% of Democrats vs. 8% of Republicans). And the two parties are separated by no more than 6 percentage points in the shares who answered each individual question correctly. On some questions, Democrats were slightly more likely than Republicans to answer correctly, including that the U.S. Constitution protects the press from interference by the U.S. government (63% vs. 57%). On average, conservative Republicans and liberal Democrats answered more questions correctly overall than others within each party.