Almost Half of Adults Have A Negative View of Big Tech

March 16, 2021

This article is included in these additional categories:

Industries | Technology

Gallup Views of Tech Companies Mar2021Big tech companies such as Amazon, Facebook and Google have become an essential part of most Americans’ lives. That doesn’t mean that adults in the US hold positive feelings towards these companies. In fact, recent data from Gallup shows quite the opposite.

When asked their overall view of technology companies such as Amazon, Facebook and Google, the largest share of the more than 900 US adults (ages 18+) surveyed held negative feelings about these types of companies, whether it be very negative (22%) or somewhat negative (23%). Only about one-third of respondents held a positive view of Big Tech, with 11% having a very positive view and 23% feeling somewhat positive.

There is a clear indication that negative feelings towards technology companies have grown. Data from August 2019 shows that US adults were more inclined to have a positive view of Big Tech (15% very positive; 31% somewhat positive) than to feel negatively about them (10% very negative; 23% somewhat negative).

Gallup pointed out other survey data illustrating some of the issues expressed that have likely contributed to these negative views held about Big Tech, including the spread of negative information on the internet, the size and power of Big Tech, online hate speech and privacy of personal data online. Indeed, Edelman’s Trust Barometer shows that, globally, public trust in technology companies has dropped.

As such, it appears that Americans are eager for the government to step up its regulation of these companies. While almost half (47%) of adults thought the government should increase its regulation of technology companies back in August 2019, an even larger share (57%) felt the same in January 2021.

That said, the share of those who think the government should decrease its regulations of tech companies has also increased – albeit slightly – between August 2019 and January 2021 (10% and 13%, respectively).

More data, including a breakout of responses by political affiliation, can be found here.

About the Data: January-February data is based on a survey of 906 US adults ages 18 and older.

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