Majority of Americans Support Phone Spying

For all the outcry over the NSA's phone snooping this week, the majority of Americans are A-OK with the government tracking their phone calls. That's according to a new poll by Pew Research and the Washington Post, which found 56% believe tracking calls is an acceptable way for the government to investigate terrorism. The study of 1,004 adults also found 45% supported the government going even further than it has, agreeing it should be able to monitor everyone’s email and online activities if it might prevent future terrorist attacks, reports the Post.

Support for phone tracking is even higher amongst Democrats, with 64% calling the practice acceptable, versus 52% of Republicans. That's a dramatic shift from the W. Bush era: A 2006 poll showed 51% approval across the board for phone tracking, but 75% of Republicans said it was acceptable back then, versus 37% of Democrats, Pew reports. The new study also found 62% believe investigating terrorist threats is more important than not intruding on privacy. (More Pew Research Center stories.)