Americans still believe in the First Amendment. The 2015 annual survey found that three-fourths (75%) do not believe the First Amendment goes too far in the rights it guarantees. That is a significant jump from the 57 percent last year brought about by the Boston Marathon bombing and questions about media coverage of the tragedy.

Gene Policinski is the chief operating officer of the Newseum Institute and the Institute’s First Amendment Center. He was also one of the founding editors of USA Today. He was on my radio program recently to talk about the latest results of their annual survey.

The good news is that Americans believe in the First Amendment. The bad news is that only about two thirds of them could name one of the rights in the First Amendment. And I have found that it is the rare person indeed who can name all five rights in the First Amendment. In case you are wondering they are: Freedom of Religion, Freedom of Speech, Freedom of the Press, Right of Assembly, and Right to Petition the Government.

A majority (51%) of Americans believe the U.S. Constitution establishes a Christian nation. This has been a constant since the question was asked on the survey, though they noted that older respondents (54%) believed this more than younger respondents (37%).

The survey also asked Americans about what they thought the impact on religious liberty would be of a possible Supreme Court decision to legalize same sex marriage. While 54 percent thought it would have no impact, another 31 percent believed it would have a harmful impact.

Another question was whether public wedding businesses should be required to serve same sex couples regardless of religious based objections. A majority disagreed (42% strongly disagree, 13% mildly disagree) with the statement. And they found that younger adults are more supportive of requiring all businesses to serve same sex couples.

Americans obviously support the First Amendment, but some need a little more education about what’s in it.