What Do Americans Think When No One Is Watching?

It is undeniable that there is a darkness in the hearts of many Americans today. And not only the deranged few who commit horrible crimes against their neighbors. For every famous alleged killer—the Luigi Mangiones and Tyler Robinsons—there are millions of people who excuse or even support the evil they commit.

This turn toward political violence has been documented thoroughly in our pages, and in countless polls. With every new politically driven attack, murder, or public threat, it is increasingly clear that the old norm against political violence is eroding, and a share of the public is glad to see it go.

And yet, because this type of violence remains extremely controversial, polls may discount the true share of Americans who have come to embrace it. The radicals who mocked the death of Charlie Kirk from behind anonymous social media accounts, for example, might be somewhat coy if a pollster asked them if they believe it was justified.

That’s why we chose a different method to gauge Americans’ opinions. On Monday, The Free Press launched The Honesty Project, a series of surveys we’re conducting through November to understand what our fellow Americans truly believe—and the size of the gap between those true beliefs and publicly stated views. To pull it off, we’ve partnered with Populace, a leading, Boston-based think tank. The key to our surveys is a system that asks sensitive questions, along with a group of less controversial ones, letting respondents signal their answers without stating them directly. (You can read more about the full methodology here.)