If you haven’t heard about Sunday’s Oscars debacle, we’re surprised you’re even reading this article. That is, when Will Smith slapped Chris Rock during the 94th Academy Awards after he made a joke about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. And everyone on the internet sure has a take, some spicier than others. But who do the majority of Americans side with when it comes to the incident? Is it as polarizing as it seems online?
CivicScience ran a quick survey to see where people stand. The results show that the majority of American adults–more than three-quarters of respondents–who were familiar with the matter (excluding those who said “I’m not sure”) take the side of Rock, while a smaller subset (22%) say they’re on Smith’s side.
Further CivicScience tracking data that has been running since 2011 show that Will Smith’s overall favorability took a steep nosedive as well, dropping more than 10 percentage points since last week.
Three Fast Insights
Women are more likely to side with Smith.
Those who live in the South or West are more likely to side with Will Smith than those in the Northeast and Midwest.
People aged 35 to 54 are the most likely to side with Rock by a good amount, while Gen Z and Baby Boomers nearly mirror each other in their heightened support for Will Smith.
Why study this? Because everything affects everything.
