Tom Garrity

Small business gets a big round of applause from New Mexicans but the courts a big boo. That's just one of the takeaways from the Garrity Perception Survey, an annual poll taken by ABQ PR agency The Garrity Group.

The survey is conducted by Research and Polling. This year it was done in January, before the pandemic struck, and contacted 408 adults with 65 percent of the interviews completed via cell phones to ensure accuracy.

When asked to rate state institutions as favorable or unfavorable, it was the small business owners who came out on top, winning a 79 percent  approval rating. They need it. Small business has become more fragile during the state economic downturn, especially restaurants and the like.

The state's burgeoning film industry, often controversial because of the large state subsides it receives, was also a favorite among respondents, getting a 70 percent favorable rating as did community colleges.

The public schools have some work to do. Only 41 percent of this polled rate them favorably. "Medical systems" didn't fare much better winning just 44 percent approval.

But it was the "courts and justice" that were at the bottom of the barrel in favorability at only 30 percent. That's not shocking considering the ongoing controversy over the release from jail of violent suspects and the stubborn crime wave that has bedeviled the ABQ metro.

When it comes to what people and professions New Mexicans trust, respondents to the Research and Polling survey gave their highest numbers to relatives and family. A full 76 percent deemed them trustworthy. Also scoring high were teachers at 69 percent and doctors at 66 percent.

While the courts don't score well in the polling, police officers did better, with 58 percent saying they are trustworthy. But there's a big qualifier. The survey was done before the infamous George Floyd killing and others that gave momentum to Black Lives Matter and the protests that erupted nationally, including in ABQ.

Pastors, priests and religious leaders scored 52 percent in the trustworthy category, down from 62 percent in the 2017 survey.

Among those on the low end of trustworthiness were those ink-stained wretches known as journalists. Only 33 percent of those polled rated them as earning their trust, but the state officials they regularly write about were even lower, with only 31 percent trusting them.

As you might expect lawyers were near last in the trust department, with only 29 percent saying they are trustworthy. However, no one can compete with ad executives when it comes to bad PR perceptions. A mere 20 percent of those surveyed said they trust leaders of the state's advertising firms. Well, they may not trust them but they buy what they sell.

NEWS SOURCES

The perception poll also asked respondents to name their most preferred news sources:

In 2020, traditional media sources are still the preferred media when getting news and information. New Mexico residents are most likely to say television is their primary news source, followed by newspaper and radio news. Television is the single most popular source of information. Nearly three-quarters (72%) of New Mexicans say they get their news or information from television either a lot (49%) or somewhat (23%). . .New Mexico residents access radio either ‘a lot’ (24%) or ‘somewhat’ (24%) for news and information. . . Print or online newspapers are accessed by 48 percent of residents. Digital news sources continue to be a consistent source. . .New Mexico residents are most likely to say internet news is their primary digital source followed by social media sites and internet blogs. Nearly 58% of New Mexicans say they rely on internet news sites either ‘a lot’ (33%) or ‘somewhat’ (25%).

More interesting tidbits from the survey are posted here and here.

The Garrity Group has conducted the poll each year since 2011. The firm was founded 15 years ago by Tom Garrity, a former TV journalist and onetime co-superintendent of ABQ Public Schools.

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(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2020