Poll: Majority believe free speech in U.S. headed in wrong direction

By Sarah Roderick-Fitch
The Center Square

An overwhelming majority of Americans believe freedom of speech is headed in the wrong direction, according to a new poll.

The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), through its National Speech Index, tracks attitudes toward free speech on a quarterly basis. The latest tracking shows that 74% of Americans believe things are headed in the wrong direction when it comes to free speech. Only 26% believe things are headed in the right direction.

The group says there has been a 10% increase since July in the number of Americans who believe free speech is headed in the wrong direction.

The index, which began tracking attitudes toward free speech in January 2024, has shown political shifts, where Republicans’ attitude shifted in a positive direction around the time President Donald Trump was elected for a second term; however, they have dropped from 69% in July to 55% in October, believing free speech was headed in the right direction.

The group noted the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk on Sept. 10.

“In the last three months, America watched as Charlie Kirk was murdered for simply debating on a college campus, followed immediately by a wave of censorship of those who opposed his views,” said FIRE Research Fellow and Polling Manager Nathan Honeycutt in a news release. “It’s no surprise that a record number of Americans of all parties now think that it’s a dire time for free speech in America.”

The drop in confidence in the direction of free speech for Democrats dropped from 17% in July to 11% in October. At the same time, the number of independents dropped from 31% to 19%.

However, prior to Kirk’s assassination, the survey shows a dramatic shift in attitudes based on political party between the presidency of former President Joe Biden and the election of Trump.

Between January and April 2024, the percentage of Democrats who viewed free speech as headed in the right direction rose from 46% to 56%, then decreased to 50% in the lead-up to the November 2024 presidential election. The number dropped to 38% in January 2024, then dramatically dropped to 17% in April 2025.

Whereas the percentage for Republicans was low, beginning at 25% of those who believed free speech was headed in the right direction between January and April 2024, then dropped to 20% in July 2024, but began to rise in October 2024 from 24% to 52% in January 2025, peaking at 69% in July.

Notably, among independents, it would appear the Trump presidency has had a positive impact on their views of the direction in which free speech is headed.

In January 2024, independents were surveyed at a lower rate than Republicans, with only 23% rising slightly to 26%, then dropping again to 19% in July 2024. They began rising in October 2024 to 24%, steadily increasing and peaking at 36% in April 2025. However, the number started to dip to 31% in July, and to 19% in October.