Majority of Americans Oppose Military Intervention in Syria

WASHINGTON - June 14, 2013 - PRLog -- The Media and Public Opinion (MPO) Post has reported extensively on American opinion regarding the U.S.’s role in the ongoing Syrian civil war, finding that only a small percentage of Americans favor military intervention. Instead, the majority of citizens support either humanitarian aid to civilians alone, or humanitarian aid supplemented with non-lethal aid to the Syrian opposition.

Recent multinational allegations of sarin nerve gas use in Syria by President Bashar al-Assad’s regime have added mounting pressure to the Obama administration to take a definitive stance on intended United States intervention within the area.

Yet, how exactly does news of the Syrian conflict influence attitudes?

By examining the opinions of those who follow international news, MPO finds that individuals who are the most internationally informed (those who think that either international news coverage is adequately addressed within American media or that current coverage should be increased) tend to agree that the US should limit involvement to humanitarian and non-lethal aid.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the same poll finds that Americans who feel there is an over-saturation of international news, or simply don’t follow it, are much more likely to favor no U.S. involvement.

In April, the Media and Public Opinion Post reported that about three fourths of Americans believe there is either not enough international media coverage, or are fine with the current levels. Furthermore, the data suggests that those who are inclined towards international news coverage–individuals who are either content with current reporting or desire more–are much more likely to favor non-lethal aid over inaction.

An early May poll conducted by the Pew Research Center finds that there is nearly unanimous international opposition to United States lethal intervention. The same poll highlights considerable international concern for violence spreading within the Middle Eastern region, further complicating U.S. interests and options when considering its potential involvement.

Based off the available data, it seems an ideal situation in the eyes of many Americans would see the U.S. use humanitarian and other non-lethal aid to mitigate Syrian violence.  However, the Obama administration announced recently that the US would be supplying military aid  to Syrian rebels, citing the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government as the reason for intervention.  The effect of this unpopular step on Obama's approval (if any), will be seen in upcoming surveys.

Data was collected over the month of March 2013, from a poll of 511 respondents. The margin of error is 4.34%.