Changes

{{cquote|The number of people who identify themselves as [[atheism|atheists]] in the United States has been rising, modestly but steadily, in recent years. Our aggregated data from 2012 show that 2.4% of American adults say they are atheists when asked about their religious identity, up from 1.6% in 2007."<ref>[http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2013/10/23/5-facts-about-atheists/ Facts about atheists]</ref>}}

{{cquote|The number of people who identify themselves as [[atheism|atheists]] in the United States has been rising, modestly but steadily, in recent years. Our aggregated data from 2012 show that 2.4% of American adults say they are atheists when asked about their religious identity, up from 1.6% in 2007."<ref>[http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2013/10/23/5-facts-about-atheists/ Facts about atheists]</ref>}}

However, post [[Elevatorgate]] (a July 2011 controversy in which [[Richard Dawkins]] was accused of [[misogny]]), there has been a lot of friction with the [[atheist movement]] and the atheist movement lost a significant amount of momentum (see also: [[Atheist factions]]).  For example,  in 2012 and subsequent years, Google USA saw a lower search volume for the words "atheist" and "atheism" (see: [[Google trends - Atheism and agnosticism terms]]).

However, post [[Elevatorgate]] (a July 2011 controversy in which [[Richard Dawkins]] was accused of [[misogny]]), there has been a lot of friction with the [[atheist movement]] and the atheist movement lost a significant amount of momentum (see also: [[Atheist factions]]).   

[[New Atheism]] is a form of militant atheism which was launched in 2006. Due to the Elevatorgate controversy and ongoing accusations of prominent new atheists engaging in [[Islamophobia]], the New Atheism movement has waned (see also: [[Richard Dawkins' loss of influence]] and [[Richard Dawkins and Islamophobia accusations]]).<ref>[https://newrepublic.com/article/123349/new-atheism-dead ''Is the New Atheism dead?] by Elizabeth Bruenig, New Republic, November 6, 2015</ref><ref>[http://www.patheos.com/blogs/danthropology/2015/12/uproar-against-dawkins-is-sign-of-new-atheism-retrogression/ Uproar Against Dawkins Is Sign of New Atheism Retrogression] by Joshua Kelly</ref>  

[[New Atheism]] is a form of militant atheism which was launched in 2006. Due to the Elevatorgate controversy and ongoing accusations of prominent new atheists engaging in [[Islamophobia]], the New Atheism movement has waned (see also: [[Richard Dawkins' loss of influence]] and [[Richard Dawkins and Islamophobia accusations]]).<ref>[https://newrepublic.com/article/123349/new-atheism-dead ''Is the New Atheism dead?] by Elizabeth Bruenig, New Republic, November 6, 2015</ref><ref>[http://www.patheos.com/blogs/danthropology/2015/12/uproar-against-dawkins-is-sign-of-new-atheism-retrogression/ Uproar Against Dawkins Is Sign of New Atheism Retrogression] by Joshua Kelly</ref>