“As they have for the past four decades, most Americans say criticism from news organizations keeps political leaders from doing things they shouldn’t, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted in September 2024. But Republicans’ and Democrats’ views on this question often shift depending on which party controls the White House. And Republicans became much more skeptical about the media’s so-called “watchdog role” during President-elect Donald Trump’s first term. Pew Research Center has been asking Americans about the news media’s role in investigating and reporting on public officials to hold them accountable since the mid-1980s. That was about a decade after The Washington Post’s coverage of the Watergate scandal contributed to President Richard Nixon’s resignation in 1974. In our most recent survey, conducted two months before the 2024 U.S. presidential election, about three-quarters of Americans (74%) said criticism from news organizations keeps political leaders from doing things that shouldn’t be done, while far fewer (24%) said this type of scrutiny keeps leaders from doing their job. The last time such a large share of Americans expressed the view that media criticism helps hold political leaders accountable was in 2016, just before Trump was elected the first time. In the new survey, 81% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents say media criticism helps keep political leaders from doing things they shouldn’t. Two-thirds of Republicans and GOP leaners say the same. In the past, however, partisan attitudes have changed notably following presidential elections. Just after Trump’s election in 2016, for example, Republicans became much less likely to say criticism from news organizations keeps political leaders from acting inappropriately. A similar pattern appeared during President George W. Bush’s administration.  Just before the 2016 election, 77% of Republicans said media criticism keeps political leaders from doing things they shouldn’t. But that figure fell to 48% in 2017 to and 42% in 2018 – half the share of Democrats (84%) who said this in 2018. Do Americans think news coverage is fair to all sides?..”