This image, from Pew Research, is the reason why Data Block exists. There is helpful and quantifiable information the can easily be conveyed through numbers, graphs, and charts. In this instance, it’s the knowledge - or lack of, depending how you see it - of the American public on several large topics that are frequently covered in the media.

For instance, the below image reveals that the public tends to have a more accurate idea of unemployment than the stock exchange. Are there social reasons for this? Such as many perceive Wall Street to be abstract and corrupt, while a topic like unemployment will strike a more relatable note close to home.

The next image I find the most interesting of the series. Republicans outscore Democrats 11 of 12 topics, ranging from war to the economy. It’s hard to account for this without plucking an excuse from thin air. Democrats and liberals are oft stereo-typed as being academics and intellectuals, the American media is often labeled the liberal media (barring Fox, of course), and so it’s hard to account for why Republicans fare so well over their rivals.

Pew has much more data in this post, including grading knowledge between the genders, ages, and on various other topics.