When Will The Media Start Questioning Polling Data?

I'm beginning to wonder when and if America's elite news folks are going to question the truth of the polling data they keep reporting. They take a nationwide poll of 1,200 people and give you a front-page story as if the results of that poll was the absolute truth. Then they tell you it is accurate to plus or minus three percent. The other day some poll said Bush's approval rating was declining. To be a bit non-partisan, they used to do the same thing to Bill Clinton. But is that report accurate? Is it the truth?

Let me give you an example of why I think the media is playing with us rather than trying to report the truth. Here's a headline from a Georgia paper: "Poll: Bush's handling of economy rejected." The lead paragraph of the story says: "As President Bush prepares for his State of the union message ..., America's confidence in his ability to handle the economy has fallen substantially over the past year." The next paragraph talks about Bush's political advisor, Karl Rove. Third paragraph says the President's approval rating fell below 60%, according to a USAToday-CNN-Gallup poll. The next paragraph gets around to a PEW Research poll which, finally, had to do with the economy. Then the final paragraph of the story reports some data from the PEW polling. One of the comments from the Pew Research was that most of the drop in the president's popularity came, and I quote here: "... among Democrats and independents." But you've got to remember the headline said "Bush's handling of economy rejected", and the lead paragraph said "Americans' confidence in his ability to handle the economy has fallen substantially ..."

I wonder if the media people think we are such absolute dummies that we have already forgotten all the headlines that said such-and-such poll said Gore was many points ahead. Or do the news folks think we have forgotten the bold headlines that said there was no way anybody could beat Roy Barnes for governor. Don't I remember a poll that was touting Barnes as a possible presidential candidate. And what about those polls that said Max Cleland was a shoo-in for Senator, and that Saxby Chambliss was trailing miserably. And the national polls that absolutely assured everybody that the Democrats had control of the United States Senate all locked up.

I've got to ask: if so much of the polling from recent years is inaccurate, how come the media folks keep reporting it as if it is the gospel truth?

This is Gordon Sawyer, and may the wind always be at your back.