Question

_____ is the collective feelings of the population of an area; which may or may not have factual basis.

Answer 1

Public opinion is the collective feelings of the population of an area; which may or may not have factual basis. This may include emotional words with languages that may have facts or basis but cannot be relied upon because of its subjectivity in interpreting an event or happening.

Answer 2

The answer is public opinion.

Public opinion is defined as the set of feelings, which in more specific terms are attitudes and values, that a significant segment of a population express about a particular subject.

Since it is composed of attitudes and values, it is not necessarily based on facts and, because of its power to influence numerous aspects of society, like culture, politics and economy, there are different strategies to shape and influence public opinion, propaganda being one of them.