Objective

Today, 48% of Americans think Asian Americans are treated fairly. But 40% also believe Asian Americans are more loyal to their countries of origin than to the U.S., and more than 1 in 4 Americans are concerned that Chinese Americans are a threat to U.S. society, especially around national security.

These are just some of the eyebrow-raising insights uncovered by the Social Tracking of Asian Americans in the U.S. (STAATUS) Index, an annual survey that tracks Americans’ perceptions of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) released the fifth annual STAATUS Index on May 1, 2025, with three key goals:

1. Reveal new insights on Americans’ views of the country’s most ethnically diverse communities.

2. Identify notable trends that have emerged since the inaugural STAATUS Index, building upon five years of research.

3. Solidify the STAATUS Index as a must-read resource for journalists, lawmakers, academics, and the public as they develop stories and policies impacting Asian American communities.

Strategy

The STAATUS Index is the leading national study of Americans’ perceptions of Asian American communities, and a product that is both academically rigorous and publicly engaging. Launched in 2021 to explore how Asian Americans were being scapegoated and viewed through the lens of toxic stereotypes at the height of COVID-19, this year, TAAF’s data and research team sought to examine how sentiments may have evolved since the pandemic. Furthermore, we aimed to show how longstanding stereotypes, deep-seated misperceptions, and media, culture, and information consumption habits actively shape how Asian Americans are viewed—often in stark contrast to their lived realities.

EXECUTION

This year, we developed and conducted a nationally representative 14-minute survey of 4,909 respondents located across the U.S., aged 16 and older. The survey was carried out by Savanta Research via an online panel, from January 22 to February 25, 2025. To facilitate more nuanced subgroup analyses, we strategically oversampled Asian Americans.

Data was cleaned and analyzed using R and Tableau, and we used an AI powered text analysis platform (Blix) to analyze and recode our open-ended survey data, making sure to validate its analysis throughout the process.

Finally, consistent with past practice, we worked with an academic advisory committee of leading scholars and experts to review, analyze, and interpret the data. To ensure these findings were as accessible as possible, the data and research team worked closely with TAAF’s communications staff, as well as the digital agency The DataFace, to build a downloadable report, press kit with key takeaways, social media graphics, and a rich microsite complete with an interactive data playground.

TACTICS

To disseminate the 2025 STAATUS Index’s findings, TAAF used several strategies to maximize visibility.

• Timing: TAAF launched the STAATUS Index on the first day of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May, ensuring that our data could be used by the public to inform and shape timely conversations about our communities.
• Media engagement: TAAF’s communications team previewed the findings of the survey under embargo and offered expert interviews to a range of target mainstream, industry-specific, and Asian American ethnic media outlets.
• Amplification: We engaged with influencers and content creators on Instagram and TikTok to share the STAATUS Index’s key takeaways to younger audiences, which our study found are increasingly turning to social media to learn about Asian Americans. We also created a digital toolkit and launched a social media campaign to drive audiences to our microsite.
• Events: Following the report’s release, TAAF staff hosted stakeholder briefings to explain the STAATUS Index’s findings to government officials, grantees, partners, and other key audiences. We also presented a TEDx Talk-style deep dive at our annual summit in New York City on May 21-22.

Results

From the beginning of our launch on May 1, through earned and paid media strategies and a roadshow with our data + research and government relations teams, the fifth annual STAATUS Index was a success.

• The STAATUS Index received 576 press hits, generating 1.07 billion impressions.
• The survey was covered on NBC News, Bloomberg, and stations from Los Angeles to NYC to Honolulu; we garnered 118 broadcast clips with an audience of 117.09 million.
• STAATUS Index data was also featured in Axios, the New Yorker, The New York Times, The New Republic, the Independent, the San Francisco Chronicle, Channel News Asia, and the South China Morning Post, among other outlets.
• We blanketed Asian American-serving ethnic media like the World Journal, NextShark, Pacific Citizen, Rafu Shimpo, Korea Times, New India Abroad, and the Hmong Daily News.
• Content creators amplifying the survey garnered 1.49 million views and 69,000 engagements, including posts by David Suh, SeanDoesMagic, Milan Mathew, Jon Kung, and the Korean Mama.
• Our Director of Data & Research and Director of Government Relations brought our findings directly to elected officials and public leaders, including the National Conference of State Legislatures, Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, United States Conference of Mayors, and corporate employee resource groups.
• Esteemed professor of Asian American Studies and co-founder of Stop AAPI Hate, Russell Jeung, presented STAATUS’ findings to 1,000+ attendees at TAAF’s Annual Heritage Month Summit in NYC.
• After our initial PR run, the STAATUS Index continues to be referenced in media coverage to this day.

Media