https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literacy_in_the_United_States

In 2023, 28% of adults scored at or below Level 1, 29% at Level 2, and 44% at Level 3 or above.[1] Adults scoring in the lowest levels of literacy increased 9 percentage points between 2017 and 2023. In 2017, 19% of U.S. adults achieved a Level 1 or below in literacy while 48% achieved the highest levels.[2]

Anything below Level 3 is considered “partially illiterate” (see also § Definitions below).[3] Adults scoring below Level 1 can comprehend simple sentences and short paragraphs with minimal structure but will struggle with multi-step instructions or complex sentences, while those at Level 1 can locate explicitly cued information in short texts, lists, or simple digital pages with minimal distractions but will struggle with multi-page texts and complex prose.[4] In general, both groups struggle reading complex sentences, texts requiring multiple-step processing, and texts with distractions.[4]

Keep trying to tell y’all, we Americans are far dumber than you think. Rating intelligence by comparing your friends, family and lemmy posts is a self-selecting fail. You’re not out there interacting with the very dumbest of our population, and no, retail work hardly counts.

This is not lost on our politicians and media. They’re aiming for votes and eyeballs. If you want to obtain those things, you aim low and never mind the “intelligentsia”, snobs that they are. 🙄