Do Democrats and Republicans hate each other? Perhaps that only applies to a small proportion of Americans, but they get all the attention because they are the loudest, regularly posting on social media. Yanna Krupnikov and John Barry Ryan find that journalists overestimate polarization because they hear from the politically obsessed, who co-inhabit bubbles where politics is always central. For most Americans, partisanship is a relatively unimportant identity. What looks like dislike for the other party is actually disdain for politicians and people who are constantly talking about politics.

We’ve heard that Americans are strongly polarized with Democrats and Republicans increasingly disliking one another. But what if that only explains a small proportion of the population that gets all the attention because they are the loudest, posting on social media, and talking about politics? What if what looks like dislike for the other party is more like anger at politicians, or aversion to people who make politics central to their lives?

The rest of it:

https://www.niskanencenter.org/u-s-politics-the-hyper-involved-vs-the-disengaged/

From YOUR own personal experience, regardless of what the studies say, do you agree with the premise? That despite the loudest and most engaged generating all the headlines, most "Americans follow politics casually or not at all?"

Footnote: I have now moved to Canada, but I have in fact become more worried about the direction the U.S. is taking, I see a real danger in the political divide, loss of civility, and the rise of nationalism. But I am an optimist by nature, so will be keeping a hopeful but wary eye on events as they unfold.