Americans ignorant about politics.

• Position: YOUR LIFE - Brief article

Some 72% of Americans believe most of the country is not politically engaged and does not follow the news from Washington closely. Fifteen percent feel the public is informed about politics, a Zogby Interactive poll shows.

The belief that citizens are uninformed cuts across party lines, with 72% of Democrats, 74% of Republicans, and 70% of Independents all holding that view. Older Americans are more likely to believe the general public is politically aware--21% of those age 65 and older say Americans follow Washington news closely, compared to 12% of those age 18 to 29.

However, 85% of Americans say they personally follow the news closely. Of those, 62% maintain that, while there are some news stations and papers they do not like, they usually can locate a reliable source for news. The remaining 23% who follow the news closely report that they have a difficult time finding a news station or newspaper they like and...