As the United States started shutting down to fight the coronavirus outbreak, Unacast data shows, one thing became clear: White House messaging matters. When President Donald Trump declared a national emergency on March 13, there was an initial rush to grocery stores. The New York firm tracks anonymised smartphone data from millions of people who opted to share their location through different apps and cross-references it with physical “points of interest” including department stores, airports, and other consumer-facing locations. US retail sales in March fell by a record 8.7% as social distancing rules and mandated shutdowns expanded with the health crisis. Researchers used smartphone data compiled by SafeGraph to study what researchers concluded is a partisan divide in the crisis response, with areas more supportive of Trump in the 2016 election less strict about social distancing.

Source: The Express Tribune April 16, 2020 06:11 UTC