A poll recently conducted by the University of Pheonix's Political Science Polling Facility (PoliSciPolliFac) has found that most Americans know more about Canadian events and politics than they do about their own.
The poll found that while 93% of those surveyed knew who the Canadian Prime Minister was, only 32% could name George W. Bush as the current president. Also, while 77% of those surveyed could name every province and territory in Canada, only 13% could list all 50 states.
Responding to the poll, Dr. James Garner, Ph.D, who makes up 50% of the University of Pheonix's Political Science department, said the results were not surprising. "Right now there is a lot of action in the Canadian political scene. I mean, right now the Candian Conservatives are working out tax incentives for Canadian artists. Just yesterday, the Canadian supreme court affirmed its stance against tobacco advertising. American politics just can't keep up with that."
The survey also found that Canadian television programming, and in particular, Canadian news programs, are becoming increasingly popular in the United States. In 2000, only 34% of Americans regularly watched the CBC, but today, more than 78% of Americans watch at least a half-hour of the CBC per day.
Garner explained:
"Americans just can't get enough of the action-packed Canadian news. It makes sense, because if you turn on CNN, all you hear about is subpeonas, senate trials, scandals, and on and on with this boring stuff. But you turn on the CBC and they have news about teacher's unions and commemorative plaques for new bridges. And Americans are eating it up."
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