Are Americans Getting Ruder?

After the Fact · Oct 23, 2026 · 17m

Do you roll your eyes at dogs invading the grocery store? Cringe at music blasting during your morning commute? Or recoil at the smell of cigarette smoke wafting down the street? For many, behaviors like these are part of the perception that the way we treat each other in public has become less polite. In fact, almost half of U.S adults say the way people behave in public today is ruder than it was before the COVID-19 pandemic.

In this episode, we speak to John Gramlich, associate director of short reads at Pew Research Center, to hear about the latest data on how Americans perceive rudeness…