A new Pew poll on ‘Political Polarization & Media Habits’ of Americans found an increased self-segregation of the right and the left, particularly in media sources and social circles. While both “consistent” conservatives and liberals are more likely than those less politically-minded to have friends with ideological differences, those on the left are more likely to end friendships or “block” others because of political differences.

In a section on social circles and the use of social media by the ideological groups, Pew found that both consistent conservatives and liberals were far more likely to surround themselves with like-minded people, with conservatives being the most likely. While only 25% of respondents with “mixed” ideological views said most of their close friends shared their views, 52% of strong liberals and 66% of conservatives said that was true. Consistent liberals however were more likely to end friendships due to political disagreements:

At the same time, consistent liberals are more likely to stop talking to someone because of politics. Roughly a quarter (24%) have done so, compared with 16% of consistent conservatives and around 10% of those with more mixed political views.

As John Avlon noted, “For these self-righteous and thin-skinned folks, there are apparently limits to the liberal virtue of tolerance.” The study found a similar trend when it came to social media. More than four out of ten consistent liberals had “blocked or defriended” someone because of their differing politics, far more than conservatives and those with “mixed” views:

Roughly four-in-ten consistent liberals on Facebook (44%) say they have blocked or defriended someone on social media because they disagreed with something that person posted about politics. This compares with 31% of consistent conservatives and just 26% of all Facebook users who have done the same.

The opposite is true as well, with strong liberals being more likely than conservatives to follow issue-based groups according to ideological agreement:

Consistent liberals who pay attention to politics on Facebook are also more likely than others to “like” or follow issue-based groups: 60% do this, compared with 46% of consistent conservatives and just a third (33%) of those with mixed views.

Both groups are more likely than the less politically-minded to follow elected officials and political parties, with conservatives slightly more likely than liberals (49% /42%).