Flemington, NJ, October 2, 2008 – A new national study among 317 self-reported Democrats, Republicans and Independents, revealed that Independent’s perceptions change slightly on whether Governor Sarah Palin would help or hurt John McCain’s campaign after viewing Katie Couric interview.

The study was conducted by HCD Research and the Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion (MCIPO) on October 1, to obtain Americans’ perceptions of an interview with John McCain and Sarah Palin on CBS News with Katie Couric.

Among the study results:

“Do you feel that selecting Governor Sarah Palin as a running mate will help or hurt John McCain’s campaign?”

The Media Curves web site 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 or Chris Borick, Ph.D., director of the Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion, please contact Vince McGourty, HCD Research, at (908) 483-9121 or (vince.mcgourty@hcdi.net).

HCD Research is a communications research company headquartered in Flemington, NJ.  The company's services include traditional and web-based communications research.  For additional information on HCD Research, access the company’s web site at www.hcdi.net or call HCD Research at 908-788-9393.  Headquartered in Allentown, Pennsylvania, MCIPO is a respected source of public opinion data on local, state and national issues. For additional information on Muhlenberg College, go to www.muhlenberg.edu