Distrust in Government

Americans today repeatedly express dissatisfaction with government and doubt its ability to do what is right. This was not always the case. In the early 1960s, trust in the government neared 80 percent. Over the course of the decade, trust in government declined, and events in 1968 brought that long process of erosion to a head. These events included the war in Vietnam, violence in American cities, and the chaotic events in and around the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, broadcast into the homes of 90 million viewers.