Nearly 75% of Indians believe that global corporations are a threat to democracy: Report

The 2024 Democracy Perception Index revealed a striking sentiment among Indians, with nearly 75% expressing concern that global corporations pose a threat to democracy. As per the survey findings, after economic inequality and corruption, global corporations are viewed as the third most significant threat to democracy.

The US also stands out as among the countries with the highest levels of the perceived threat from global corporations.

India is also ranked top among countries fearing that big tech companies like Google, Amazon and Meta threaten democracy.


India is a leading nation wary of the burgeoning power of tech giants whose reach extends deeply into daily life and public discourse.

Shifting global perceptions
The popularity of the hegemonic America is fading globally, especially in Muslim-majority countries, according to the Index. The United States' reputation has suffered globally between 2023 and 2024. This drop in positive attitudes towards the US is particularly stark in Indonesia, Malaysia, Turkey, Morocco, Egypt, and Algeria as well as many European countries - Switzerland, Ireland, Ukraine and Germany.

Perceptions of China reveal a global divide - Western democracies, including the United States, European nations, Australia, Japan, and South Korea, hold predominantly negative views, contrasting with the positive perceptions prevalent in the rest of the world.

The majority of surveyed countries hold unfavorable opinions of Russia. The few exceptions with a positive perception of Russia are primarily located in Asia or the Middle East, including Vietnam, India, Algeria, and China. Nevertheless, when combined, these countries with positive views constitute a majority of the world's population.

The global perspective on Russia and China reflects a clear contrast between negative perceptions prevailing in the Global North and positive perceptions emerging in the Global South. Over the period spanning from 2022 to 2024, attitudes towards both nations have shown a consistent trend towards improvement, especially within the Global South, consequently deepening the divide in global public opinion.

However, it should be noted that most nations around the world still regard the United States as a force for positive change in global democracy, as per the survey, notably in Latin America, Asia, and various Eastern European nations like Poland and Ukraine.

According to the survey, opinions regarding the US's influence on global democracy are more divided in Western European countries, where attitudes range from mixed to slightly negative. Between 2020 and 2024, there was a noticeable fluctuation in perceptions of the US's global impact, initially becoming more favorable, peaking around 2022 or 2023, before experiencing a significant decline in 2024.

Surveying approximately 63,000 respondents from 53 countries, the index provides an overview of opinions regarding democracy, geopolitics, and global influential entities.