Media Myth Exposed: 84 Percent of Americans Happy With Lives

If you listen to the negativity in the media , the overwhelming majority of Americans think they're falling behind financially, are despondent about their lives and their futures, and are desperately looking for a change.

Yet, a new poll out from the folks at Gallup confirms people are far happier with themselves and their lives than press members care to report. Here's the first result from Gallup (emphasis added throughout):

According to the Dec. 6-9, 2007, poll, 84% of Americans say they are satisfied with the way things are going in their personal life at this time, while 14% are dissatisfied. These results have been fairly stable since Gallup first started tracking Americans' personal life satisfaction in 1979. The percentage of Americans who say they are satisfied with their personal life has averaged 82% over this period, with a low of 73% in July 1979 and a high of 88% in December 2004. (It is worth noting that in the same Dec. 6-9 survey only 27% of Americans said they were satisfied with the way things are going in the United States at this time, providing a vivid contrast between Americans' view of things "out there" across the country and their view of their own personal lives.)

Key question: who provides folks' view of things "out there?"

http://www.gallup.com/poll/103483/Most-Americans-Very-Satisfied-Their-Personal-Lives.aspx