Americans under 30 years of age have a significantly more favorable view of the National Security Agency (NSA) compared to older Americans, a new survey from the Pew Research Center finds.
Overall, 51 percent of Americans have a positive view of the NSA with 37 percent of American adults saying they view the federal agency unfavorably,
according to the poll taken Jan. 7-11 of 1,504 adults with a margin of error of 2.9 percentage points.
Those numbers have not changed since the polling group took the survey in 2013 after former NSA contractor Edward Snowden leaked information about the agency's surveillance of both American citizens and the country's allies.
However, 61 percent of American adults ages 18 to 30 have a favorable view of the NSA, compared to 40 percent, aged 65 and older, who say they view the federal agency favorably.
Fifty-five percent of Americans in the 30- to 49-year-old age group and 45 percent of 50- to 64-year-olds gave the NSA favorable rating.
Democrats seem to have more faith in the federal agency, with 58 percent saying they view the NSA favorably compared to the 47 percent of Republicans, who said they also have a favorable view of the agency.