Nearly Half (47%) of Canadians Say They're Becoming Desensitized to News of Terrorist Attacks, Violence

Toronto, ON - Given the seemingly non-stop news coverage recently about terrorist attacks, mass shootings, allegations of police brutality and other violence, many Canadians now appear to be desensitized to hearing news like this, according to a new Ipsos poll conducted for Global News.

Nearly half (47%) of Canadians say that when they hear news like this `it doesn't surprise or shock them', while a slim majority (53%) says that when they hear about this type of news they are `shocked or horrified by it'.

Men (57%) are much more likely than women (38%) to say news like this doesn't surprise or shock them, while women (62%) are more likely than men (43%) to say they are shocked or horrified by it. Regionally, those most likely to be desensitized include those in Saskatchewan and Manitoba (61%), Alberta (58%), BC (58%) and Atlantic Canada (53%), while only a minority in Ontario (48%) and, especially, Quebec (30%) say the same. In fact, seven in ten (70%) Quebecers are shocked or horrified when they hear news stories like this.

Police violence in the United States, in particular, has been a regular news story here in Canada, and Canadians are split as to whether `the issue has been blown out of proportion'. One half (52%) `agrees' (19% strongly/33% somewhat) that it has been, while the other half (48%) `disagrees' (19% strongly/29% somewhat). Men (59%) are more likely than women (44%) to believe it has been blown out of proportion, as are those aged 18-34 (59%) compared to those aged 35-54 (50%) and 55+ (48%).

Regionally, Quebecers (71%) are by far the most likely to believe the issue has been blown out of proportion, followed distantly by those living in Alberta (51%), Ontario (48%), Atlantic Canada (43%), Saskatchewan and Manitoba (43%) and British Columbia (36%).

Canadians Worried About Personal Safety Travelling Abroad...

Coverage of international news stories about terrorism, violence and safety could be taking its toll on Canadians and their travel plans, as it appears that most are worried about their personal safety if travelling abroad this summer. Six in ten (60%) say they'd be worried (21% strongly/39% somewhat) if travelling to the United States, which is actually the least amount of worry when compared to other regions of the world. More would be worried about their personal safety if travelling to Asia (62% -- 23% very/38% somewhat), South America (70% -- 24% very/46% somewhat), Europe (72% -- 31% very/41% somewhat)), Africa (78% -- 36% very/41% somewhat) or the Middle-East (90% -- 67% very/23% somewhat).

In general, the level of worry between men and women is roughly comparable, except when it comes to travel to Europe (77% of women are worried vs. 67% of men), and the United States (69% of women are worried vs. 51% of men). Worry about personal safety increases across the board as one ages.

These are some of the findings of an Ipsos poll conducted between July 27 to 29, 2016, on behalf of Global News. For this survey, a sample of 1,002 Canadians aged 18+ Ipsos' online panel was interviewed online. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll is accurate to within +/ - 3.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, had all Canadian adults been polled. The credibility interval will be wider among subsets of the population. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.

For more information on this news release, please contact:

Darrell Bricker, PhD
CEO
(416) 324-2001
Ipsos Public Affairs
[email protected]

About Ipsos

Ipsos ranks third in the global research industry. With a strong presence in 87 countries, Ipsos employs more than 16,000 people and has the ability to conduct research programs in more than 100 countries. Founded in France in 1975, Ipsos is controlled and managed by research professionals. They have built a solid Group around a multi-specialist positioning-- Media and advertising research; Marketing research; Client and employee relationship management; Opinion & social research; Mobile, Online, Offline data collection and delivery. Ipsos has been listed on the Paris Stock Exchange since 1999. www.ipsos.com