Poll: Pope Francis' popularity down among American Catholics

Pope Francis’ once-soaring popularity among Americans and American Catholics has sunk in the wake of child sex abuse reports within the Catholic Church that are crippling one of the world’s most powerful institutions, according to a new Pew Research poll.

Key findings: 31% of U.S. Catholics believe Francis is doing excellent or good, down from 45% in January and 55% in 2015. 72% view Francis favorably overall, compared to 84% in January. Among the general American public, 51% rate him favorably, a fall of 19% since January 2017.