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Editorial: Myths, Misinformation and Propaganda
December 16th, 2008

Editorial: Editorial: Will Park Closure Just Make Things Worse?
November 29th, 2008

Editorial: Editorial: October and November Surprises
October 30th, 2008

Editorial: Is the Sky Falling?
September 24th, 2008

Editorial: Editorial: Who Reads Cedar Key News?
September 19th, 2008

Editorial: The First Hurdle for Every Child
September 3rd, 2008

Editorial: A View of China from Cedar Key
August 18th, 2008

Editorial: Who Killed the Real Estate Market?
August 8th, 2008

Editorial: Editorial: It`s Clamerica!
July 1st, 2008

Editorial: Can the City Commission Limit Noise?
June 6th, 2008

Editorial: Unintended Results Rock the Boat
May 29th, 2008

Editorial: Creeping Gas Prices
May 13th, 2008

Editorial: Cedar Key Election Soon
April 30th, 2008

Editorial: Questions fo the Candidates
April 2nd, 2008

Editorial: Coming Elections: National County and City
March 19th, 2008

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Poll Results: Fact, Fiction, or Propaganda?

Poll Results: Fact, Fiction, or Propaganda?

Editor

November 2002 is past, but publishing the results of polls continues. Last week the local print newspaper was responsible for publication of a poll that asked "Do you feel that the Cedar Key Police are doing a good job of enforcing the law?" The results were 65 percent answering "Yes", and 35 percent answering "No".

When presented with polling results the reader might well ask a few questions. Reputable pollsters disclose the margin of error and how many people answered the question. For a poll to be valid, a spectrum of the population must be questioned. Ideally, the wording of the question should not prompt a particular answer.

If a pollster asked twenty Corvette owners to name the best make of car, the results would be predictable. If Fidel Castro polled one hundred Cubans on his place in history, the results would be predictable.

The next time the results of a poll are presented, the following questions should apply:

1. How many people answered the question?

2. Was the question a straight question?

3. Who asked the question?

4. Why was the question asked?

5. Do you expect the pollster to be fair?

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