A Washington Post-ABC News poll shows that a majority of the general public opposes paying college athletes. According to the Washington Post, nearly every demographic and political group opposes “pay-for-play” except non-whites. Among whites, 73 percent do not support and 24 percent support. No demographic except for non-whites had more than 25 percent support. 40 percent of men and 27 percent of women favor and 37 percent of fans support paying players and 27 percent of non-fans support it.
The pollsters were split evenly when it came to allowing college athletes to form a union to negotiate rights and working conditions. However, the racial divide is more apparent with the issue of unions, 66 percent of non-whites support the union idea while 56 percent of whites opposed it.
Yet a majority of poll respondents still viewed the scholarship as adequate compensation, reflecting the view of many college administrators and the NCAA. Two months ago, several weeks before CAPA filed its petition, Emmert expressed enthusiasm over a possible stipend for miscellaneous expenses like laundry or trips home, calling it “less threatening” than the proposition of increasing a scholarship’s value to cover the full cost of attendance.