70% of BURSA newspaper readers reject Trump's policies

Most of the readers of the BURSA newspaper do not agree with the political direction of the Trump administration. According to a survey conducted between April 15-20, 2025, in which over 5,000 readers participated who could vote only once from an IP, to the question "Do you agree with the policy of the Trump Administration?", 70% of the respondents answered that they do not agree, while 30% approve of the measures taken by the new administration in the White House.

Although, at first glance, this result may seem like just a simple expression of a political preference, in reality, it speaks of much more than that: about the value, cultural and geopolitical cleavages within a well-defined social category - the public interested in economics, finance and geopolitics, represented by the readers of the BURSA newspaper.

We note that 70% of the readers of BURSA are, in general, people with a high level of education, familiar with financial markets, the global economy and geopolitical dynamics. We are talking about an informed public, with access to international news sources and an inclination towards the values of economic liberalism, support for European integration and attachment to transatlantic partnerships. In this context, Donald Trump's populist, isolationist and protectionist rhetoric collides with the expectations and values of this segment of society.

Consequently, the proportion of 70% against Trump's policies is significant and shows a clear orientation of this segment of the public towards a globalist, open and cooperative economic vision, in opposition to the protectionism and isolationism that have characterized the Trumpist agenda.

In a value analysis, our readers seem to position themselves predominantly on the economic internationalism - pro-globalization axis, an axis that is in direct contradiction with the economic nationalism and sovereignist populism promoted by Trump. However, the fact that 30% of respondents support the US administration's policy shows that there is also a significant minority in this segment that resonates with the discourse of force, the promise of economic protection or the firm positions on global geopolitics, especially in relation to China or Russia.

Analyzed from a sociological perspective, the distribution of attitudes expressed in the survey reflects the polarization specific to contemporary societies, influenced by hyper-access to information and the fragmentation of narrative sources. Even if Romania is not directly involved in the US elections, the decisions taken by the US administration have reverberations on the global economic, military and diplomatic climate, and these effects are perceived differently depending on the cultural and economic capital of individuals.

• Analysis of the results: BURSA readers' reaction - a form of resistance to a government perceived as disruptive

The survey takes on an even deeper significance if it is analyzed in the context of the conflict theory of sociology, which claims that social and international relations are marked by divergent interests and the struggle for resources and power. The policy of the Trump administration, including in its second term, is characterized by isolationist tendencies, economic protectionism and the abandonment of multilateral agreements, all of which are perceived by the economic elite outside the US as destabilizing factors of global trade balances. BURSA newspaper readers, active in business areas that depend on the opening of markets and capital flows, are susceptible to these aspects, and their negative reaction can be seen as a form of resistance to a type of government perceived as disruptive.

From a psychosocial perspective, the image of Donald Trump is associated in Central and Eastern Europe with populism, with exacerbated nationalist discourse and with the antagonism of traditional US allies. In a space like Romania, which anchors its security on the strategic partnership with Washington and on membership in NATO and the EU, an American policy that seems to undermine these alliances can only generate anxiety and disapproval among a public attentive to geopolitical dynamics.

From a constructivist perspective on public opinion, it is also worth mentioning the role of media framing: the way in which the actions of the Trump administration are presented in the European press (and even in the business press in Romania) significantly influences the perceptions and interpretations of the public. Policies to impose customs tariffs, withdrawal from international agreements such as the Paris Agreement or the nuclear agreement with Iran, as well as aggressive discourse towards the EU or China are heavily publicized and generally presented in a critical light, which contributes to the configuration of a negative image among an educated public connected to the global flow of information.

On the other hand, the existence of a segment of 30% of respondents who support the Trump administration shows that ideological polarization is not an exclusively American phenomenon, but is also found in other spaces, including Romania. These supporters may be motivated by a pragmatic appreciation of economic policies such as tax cuts, strengthening immigration control, and the rhetoric of "America First" which, paradoxically, can also be interpreted as a model for reaffirming national sovereignty, an idea that also resonates with certain nationalist currents in Eastern Europe. Also, for part of the Romanian public, Trump's tough speech against China or certain authoritarian regimes can be perceived as a necessary form of force in a tense international context.

Also from a sociological perspective, the survey result also reflects the mechanisms of collective opinion formation in a digitalized social environment, in which social media algorithms, informational resonance chambers and affective polarization play essential roles. The audience of the BURSA newspaper is not immune to these phenomena, and the attitudes expressed in the survey are also the product of an information ecosystem in which critical accents predominate in the representation of Trump.

From a broader, cultural-anthropological perspective, the reluctance towards the figure of Donald Trump can also be seen as a reaction to his specific discursive style - a style perceived as brutal, lacking diplomatic refinement, in contrast to European cultural values that value formalism, negotiation and multilateral diplomacy. This difference in style and values contributes to the consolidation of a negative image in the European cultural space, including in Romania.