Americans increasingly think pornography is “morally acceptable”

A recent Gallup poll found that 43% of Americans pornography is “morally acceptable.” That number represents a 7% increase since last year, and a 13% increase since 2011 when Gallup first started asking about attitudes towards pornography.

Here are a few key points that can be gleaned from the poll:

1. Unmarried people are pornography’s fasting growing proponents

When asked whether they thought pornography was morally acceptable 50% of unmarried people said “yes” compared to the 35% of unmarried Americans polled last year. Married people had more of a problem with it – 35% found pornography morally acceptable, a 2% decrease since last year’s poll.

2. The percentage of males between the ages of 18 to 49 who are pro-pornography rose dramatically

Sixty-seven percent of young to middle aged men had no moral issues with pornography, a 14% jump over last year’s numbers.

3. Religion has a very strong affect on attitudes towards pornography

For those who say that “religion is very important” only 22% found pornography morally acceptable. A whopping 76% of non-religious Americans had no moral objection to pornography.

According to Gallup, the change in attitudes towards pornography coincides with a changing, more permissive culture. Issues such as sex between unmarried people, gay/lesbian relations, and polygamy have also seen a “notable increase in acceptability.”

4. Democrats are more accepting of pornography than Republicans

According to Gallup, “For the first time on record, a majority of Democrats (53%) say pornography is morally acceptable.” That’s an increase from last year’s 42%, and a 21% increase since 2011.

The number of Republicans who see pornography as morally acceptable (27%) rose two points in the last year, and 11 points since 2011.