Survey: A lot of the world see U.S. as threat to democracy

The reflection of the U.S. Capitol building on an ambulance's door in Washington D.C., United States, December 28, 2018. /Xinhua

Some 44 percent of respondents surveyed globally are worried about the United States threatening democracy in their country, a survey published on Wednesday found.

The survey of over 50,000 people from 53 countries and regions also found that a little more than half feel their nations are democratic, but many view economic inequality and the power of big tech companies as threats to democracy.

Though the majority of respondents approve of how their governments had responded to the pandemic, 53 percent feel their personal freedoms have been excessively curbed by lockdowns, according to the survey.

"We now need to come out of the COVID-19 pandemic by delivering more democracy and freedom to people," said Anders Fogh Rasmussen, chair of the Alliance of Democracies Foundation, which along with AI-powered brand tracking firm Latana conducted the survey.

Some 64 percent of those questioned regarded economic inequality as the single biggest threat to democracy around the world. Respondents in the United States were most concerned with Big Tech companies' impact on democracy.

Overall, 62 percent of respondents thought social media had a positive impact on democracy in their countries. The global figure included 76 percent in Venezuela and 72 percent in China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. In a sharp contrast, the reading in the United States stood at only 41 percent.

(With input from Reuters)