Flemington, NJ, April 23, 2009 – A new national study among 313 Americans revealed that a significant majority of male (90%) and female (87%) respondents reported that the teen pirate should be tried as an adult.

The study was conducted by HCD Research using its MediaCurves.com® website on April 22, to obtain Americans’ perceptions of news clip featuring the upcoming trial of Somali pirate, Abdul Wali Muse.

“The automated response curves measured the levels of agreement among viewers regarding the comments made by on-air pundits,” explained Glenn Kessler, president and CEO HCD Research. “Agreement levels increased during comments suggesting that the U.S. treats juveniles different compared to other countries. Agreement levels decreased among men and women, when a commentator remarked that the U.S. is “out of touch” with the rest of the world,” noted Kessler.

Among the findings:

“Do you think the teen Somali pirate will receive a fair trial in the U.S.?”

“Do you agree that the teen Somali pirate should be tried as an adult?”

“Do you think that the U.S. is too harsh on juveniles who are convicted of felonies?”

While viewing the video clip, participants indicated their levels of agreement by moving their mouse from left to right on a continuum. The responses were recorded in quarter-second intervals and reported in the form of curves. The participants were also asked to respond to post-viewing questions.

The MediaCurves.com website provides the media and general public with a venue to view Americans’ perceptions of popular and controversial media events and advertisements.

Editors/Reporters: For more information on the study, or to speak with Glenn Kessler, president and CEO, HCD Research, please contact Vince McGourty, HCD Research, at (908) 483-9121 or (vince.mcgourty@hcdi.net).