As you mentioned polls are all in the way you ask the question and what you want the results to be. I personally do not pay attention to them. I will write/send postcards to other states.( I live in California ) Joyce Vance had a great civil discourse on ways to talk to people. The most important thing is to vote. Pay attention to down ballot too.
“A poll is a manufactured news event.” That sums it up. A preconceived eye grabbing headline in need of storyline searching for validation.
The NYT then publishes countless articles over the next several days, most of which are repeated across other publications, news sources and online, reiterating their poll results in articles that only exist to echo and favorably chop and dice the poll results they wanted to see that sells more paper copies and clicks.
And you are correct, polls won’t ask questions that require critical thinking or a potential contradictive response to the beliefs of the respondents.
I’m so, so, so tired of the completely ambiguous and nonsensical question “Are you satisfied with the direction of the country?” tRumpers are going to say “No”. Democrats looking at a dysfunctional chaos in the RQP House of Representatives are going to say “No”. Anyone with half a brain (I’m convinced that’s only 25% of the population) concerned about climate change are going to say “No”. The 98% of the public without a good understanding of economics and how monopolies and big corporations operate will go to the store, look at the prices and are going to say “No”. But all of these polls and articles will directly blame Biden.
The New York Times is rapidly increasing the amount of Biden bashing on a daily basis. I’d swear they’ve been bought by Murdoch. I keep unsubscribing from their emailed newsletters; but I’m convinced it only creates a do-loop on their servers asking for more emailed subscription offers.
A poll is absolutely a manufactured news event. An event manufactured by the media reporting on the election. In other words, the Times just made that poll article up. A poll is not a real event.
You are right Elliot that the NYTs poll and its extrapolations to produce several articles with conclusions about President Biden’s age versus Trump’s is a multi day manufactured news event. Let’s not forget that when still in office, the Montreal Cognitive Assessment for Dementia was administered to Trump. His more recent confusion of Pelosi with Haley gives one pause about his mental status. He is morally reprehensible and his day to day remarks seem unhinged. The NYTs has no poll probing these important issues and readers should ask why not. Dan Rather’s six principles for truthfulness in media coverage are certainly not being observed in this case!
Well said, and is so true. I find it annoying in the extreme, and very difficult not to believe that this is a deliberate hit job by the NYT. They create their own news so they have something to write about it seems.
Unfortunately they are doing the same negative reporting situation as they did to Hilary in 2016. The constant denigrating of a candidate serves no purpose but to elevate their opponent.
They can write an editorial from time to time that says another Trump would be a disaster for the country, which they have done. But why oh why do they continue to do everything they can to help Trump win? As you pointed out, these polls have proven over and over to be a joke. So why does the media cling to them and take them as the gospel for any other reason than trying to re-elect Trump?
Yes, MSM is not the news as we once knew news to be, just the facts, ma'am. Opinions worm their way into stories that are published as if they are facts and they aren't. There was once a publication, a parody, called "Not The New York Times" and the slogan was, "All the news that fits, we print"
Does anyone ever wonder why the evening "news" fits a prescribed amount of time with ads that generate revenue for the media that became entertainment and not news some years ago? Headlines and Breaking News are designed to grab attention, not to inform. Investigative journalism has an important role to play but it doesn't pay as well as entertaining by publishing and broadcasting polls and opinions.
I sadly agree. We are living in a time/world, exacerbated by the drumpf, where making up news is common place and certainly placing the emPHasis on the wrong sylLAble. ok. I can barely read the NYT anymore, and I turned off the TV news years ago. Thank you Elliot (and for Dan Rather, Michael Moore, and others) for keeping up and fighting the good fight, journalisitally.
The NYT coverage, and content, of this poll was lacking. And dishonest. The Times was relentless in its headline grabbing screams and ongoing Biden bashing.
Very well elucidated. We need this expression and clarification to interweave on a national level. Somehow this truth about polls must make its way into the mainstream American consciousness. What you have said here is essential to the building blocks of a true democracy. Thank you!
Polls, polls, polls. I take issue with just about all of them. They are often wrong, they are skewed, they are faulted and they are distracting. And often cause voters to vote a certain way or not at all. The NYT will never admit they were off base. They want the headlines which they got with Saturday’s poll. Trump gets them readers; in electronic journalism, Trump gets them viewers. The news media has gone very far off base from what they were in their heyday of the mid twentieth century. Obviously they were far more diligent and fact based than today. I may start limiting my readings to the wire services. Facts, facts, facts!
How do I register my protest of NYT coverage? I can (and will) discontinue my subscription, but another question the NYT fails to ask is “Why are you ending your subscription and therefore support of the NYT coverage? How do I make this protest?
I am conflicted about cancelling a subscription. There is a lot that the paper does right. I am not a huge fan of their political coverage to say the least. There are many out there signaling their frustration, like this column. I would amplify those voices. The criticism can rise to a volume where it will be heard.
For a couple of weeks before the elections we had non-stop coverage of the polls - two media houses who commissioned the polls squeezed every possible story and front page headline they could out of them. I kept thinking: Is this the only election story?
As you mentioned polls are all in the way you ask the question and what you want the results to be. I personally do not pay attention to them. I will write/send postcards to other states.( I live in California ) Joyce Vance had a great civil discourse on ways to talk to people. The most important thing is to vote. Pay attention to down ballot too.
Thank you Elliot.
“A poll is a manufactured news event.” That sums it up. A preconceived eye grabbing headline in need of storyline searching for validation.
The NYT then publishes countless articles over the next several days, most of which are repeated across other publications, news sources and online, reiterating their poll results in articles that only exist to echo and favorably chop and dice the poll results they wanted to see that sells more paper copies and clicks.
And you are correct, polls won’t ask questions that require critical thinking or a potential contradictive response to the beliefs of the respondents.
I’m so, so, so tired of the completely ambiguous and nonsensical question “Are you satisfied with the direction of the country?” tRumpers are going to say “No”. Democrats looking at a dysfunctional chaos in the RQP House of Representatives are going to say “No”. Anyone with half a brain (I’m convinced that’s only 25% of the population) concerned about climate change are going to say “No”. The 98% of the public without a good understanding of economics and how monopolies and big corporations operate will go to the store, look at the prices and are going to say “No”. But all of these polls and articles will directly blame Biden.
The New York Times is rapidly increasing the amount of Biden bashing on a daily basis. I’d swear they’ve been bought by Murdoch. I keep unsubscribing from their emailed newsletters; but I’m convinced it only creates a do-loop on their servers asking for more emailed subscription offers.
A poll is absolutely a manufactured news event. An event manufactured by the media reporting on the election. In other words, the Times just made that poll article up. A poll is not a real event.
You are right Elliot that the NYTs poll and its extrapolations to produce several articles with conclusions about President Biden’s age versus Trump’s is a multi day manufactured news event. Let’s not forget that when still in office, the Montreal Cognitive Assessment for Dementia was administered to Trump. His more recent confusion of Pelosi with Haley gives one pause about his mental status. He is morally reprehensible and his day to day remarks seem unhinged. The NYTs has no poll probing these important issues and readers should ask why not. Dan Rather’s six principles for truthfulness in media coverage are certainly not being observed in this case!
Always a good combination, Dan and Elliot.
Well said, and is so true. I find it annoying in the extreme, and very difficult not to believe that this is a deliberate hit job by the NYT. They create their own news so they have something to write about it seems.
Unfortunately they are doing the same negative reporting situation as they did to Hilary in 2016. The constant denigrating of a candidate serves no purpose but to elevate their opponent.
They can write an editorial from time to time that says another Trump would be a disaster for the country, which they have done. But why oh why do they continue to do everything they can to help Trump win? As you pointed out, these polls have proven over and over to be a joke. So why does the media cling to them and take them as the gospel for any other reason than trying to re-elect Trump?
Well stated!!!
Yes, MSM is not the news as we once knew news to be, just the facts, ma'am. Opinions worm their way into stories that are published as if they are facts and they aren't. There was once a publication, a parody, called "Not The New York Times" and the slogan was, "All the news that fits, we print"
Does anyone ever wonder why the evening "news" fits a prescribed amount of time with ads that generate revenue for the media that became entertainment and not news some years ago? Headlines and Breaking News are designed to grab attention, not to inform. Investigative journalism has an important role to play but it doesn't pay as well as entertaining by publishing and broadcasting polls and opinions.
I sadly agree. We are living in a time/world, exacerbated by the drumpf, where making up news is common place and certainly placing the emPHasis on the wrong sylLAble. ok. I can barely read the NYT anymore, and I turned off the TV news years ago. Thank you Elliot (and for Dan Rather, Michael Moore, and others) for keeping up and fighting the good fight, journalisitally.
The NYT coverage, and content, of this poll was lacking. And dishonest. The Times was relentless in its headline grabbing screams and ongoing Biden bashing.
Bravo, Elliot!
Very well elucidated. We need this expression and clarification to interweave on a national level. Somehow this truth about polls must make its way into the mainstream American consciousness. What you have said here is essential to the building blocks of a true democracy. Thank you!
Polls, polls, polls. I take issue with just about all of them. They are often wrong, they are skewed, they are faulted and they are distracting. And often cause voters to vote a certain way or not at all. The NYT will never admit they were off base. They want the headlines which they got with Saturday’s poll. Trump gets them readers; in electronic journalism, Trump gets them viewers. The news media has gone very far off base from what they were in their heyday of the mid twentieth century. Obviously they were far more diligent and fact based than today. I may start limiting my readings to the wire services. Facts, facts, facts!
Touché!
Excellent column Elliot- so true
Thank you Janet. And thank you so much for your continued support.
How do I register my protest of NYT coverage? I can (and will) discontinue my subscription, but another question the NYT fails to ask is “Why are you ending your subscription and therefore support of the NYT coverage? How do I make this protest?
I am conflicted about cancelling a subscription. There is a lot that the paper does right. I am not a huge fan of their political coverage to say the least. There are many out there signaling their frustration, like this column. I would amplify those voices. The criticism can rise to a volume where it will be heard.
Brilliantly stated and relevant to our very small press landscape in Jamaica, where we just had local government elections.
Thank you Emma. And welcome. I am so glad you offer your perspective here.
For a couple of weeks before the elections we had non-stop coverage of the polls - two media houses who commissioned the polls squeezed every possible story and front page headline they could out of them. I kept thinking: Is this the only election story?
Thank you, thank you, and thank you. 🙏