A new survey of Americans found Gen Z and Millennials more likely to question the official story of 9/11—including considering the claim that US officials knew and let the attacks happen.
As Americans prepare to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, a recent survey of more than one thousand American adults indicates that younger Americans are more likely to question the official account of what happened on September 11, 2001. Those questions include whether the US government knew about the attacks and allowed them to happen, and whether the Twin Towers collapsed due to a controlled demolition.
The survey found that 41% of 18- to 29-year-olds said some people in the US government knew the attacks were coming but let them happen. The number rose to 46% among 30- to 44-year-olds. Only 30% of those 65 and older believed the government had foreknowledge.
The poll adds to two decades of surveys highlighting skepticism about the official 9/11 story—skepticism that has persisted among Americans who were children in 2001 or not yet born.
Twenty-seven percent of the youngest Americans said they believed the US government was actually “behind the attacks,” compared with 23% of 30- to 44-year-olds and just 9% of the oldest Americans polled.
The skepticism among the younger generations held when asked whether the World Trade Center towers fell in a “controlled demolition.” Thirty-six percent of 18- to 29-year-olds said controlled demolition was likely, and 29% of 30- to 44-year-olds agreed.
When asked whether they believed officials from the government of Saudi Arabia were involved in the attacks, support was higher across all ages. Thirty-seven percent of Gen Z respondents and 35% of Millennials said it was true that Saudi officials were involved in the attacks. Gen X and those 65 and older supported the claim even more strongly, with 41% and 47%, respectively.
Answers were more divided when asked about Israel’s potential role in the 9/11 attacks. Only 5% of Americans 65 and older believed Israel was involved, compared with 35% of 18- to 29-year-olds who supported the theory.
The results come from a YouGov survey of 1,098 Americans over the age of 18, conducted August 20–23, 2026. While the majority of mainstream media reporting on the survey focused on whether Americans dwell too much or too little on 9/11, almost no media attention was given to questions about the official narrative of the attacks.
Two Decades of American Skepticism
Over the last two decades, numerous polls have found Americans are skeptical of the official narrative of September 11, 2001.
Within three years of the attacks, at least one poll found that some New Yorkers believed the US government knew the attacks were coming and did nothing to stop them. An August 2004 Zogby poll, commissioned by 911Truth.org, found that 49% of New York City residents—and 41% of New York state residents—believed people in the US government “knew in advance that attacks were planned on or around September 11, 2001, and that they consciously failed to act.”
In 2006, a Scripps Howard/Ohio University poll found that 36% of Americans thought it very or somewhat likely that US officials assisted in the attacks or allowed them to happen in order to justify going to war in the Middle East. Sixteen percent of respondents said explosives brought down the Twin Towers.
A 2007 Zogby poll, also sponsored by 911Truth.org, was even more specific in asking Americans about theories relating to the 9/11 attacks. The poll asked respondents to consider the official story—”19 Arab fundamentalists executed a surprise attack that caught US intelligence and military forces off guard”—against two other theories known as LIHOP (Let It Happen On Purpose) and MIHOP (Made It Happen On Purpose).
Twenty-six percent said the US government let it happen and just 4% said the government was involved in the attacks. Among the 18- to 29-year-olds, 62.5% chose “let it happen.”
Compared with the 2026 YouGov survey, these numbers show a consistent belief over two decades that government officials had foreknowledge of the attacks.
Surveys indicating Americans doubted the official story of 9/11 continued into the 2010s and 2020s.
In 2013, a YouGov poll sponsored by the Architects & Engineers for 9/11 Truth’s ReThink911 campaign found that 38% of Americans doubted the official story and 10% did not believe it at all. After being shown footage of World Trade Center Building 7’s collapse, 46% of respondents said they suspected the building was brought down by controlled demolition. WTC 7 was not hit by a plane on September 11, 2001.
A year later, Rasmussen reported that 24% of Americans said the government knew the attacks were coming and did nothing.
More recently, a 2023 YouGov survey found that 20% of Americans said it was definitely or probably true that the government was behind the 9/11 attacks.
In August 2025, Change Research polled 1,590 registered voters and found that 41% said the government had foreknowledge of the attacks.
Clearly, a sizable percentage of Americans continue to question the events surrounding the attacks of September 11, 2001. Those numbers are concentrated among the younger generations who witnessed the events, as well as those yet to be born.
Note: I am one of the Millennials who continue to question the 9/11 events. I will be in New York City this weekend for the Turning the Tide: 9/11 25 Years Later event in New York City.
