Why I think the quick polls at CNN.com are useless
CNN.com always has a poll on their main page, usually related to some story they are covering that day. I always read the question, I used to respond, but now I've figured they are pretty useless. Why?
- It is a poll of CNN.com users only. If I had to guess I'd say white, middle to upper-middle class professionals that have desk jobs so they can sit and look at CNN.com during the day. So no matter what the 'result' is, it is heavily skewed and can hardly be called anything close to a national poll.
- The questions and answers are too simple. Just the other day, after a bunch of stories of kids that are flying alone getting mis-placed in flight, there is the magic poll question: "Would you let your kids fly alone?"
Before I could stop myself I clicked on "no." My kids are three years old! What kind of moron would put a three year old on a plane by him or herself?
Does this mean anyone else should not let their kids on a plane? Of course not. So if the poll says "no" at the end, this may just mean that a lot of white yuppies have little kids. Or not.
Here's a perfect example, "ripped" from todays web page:
Were you satisfied with Rep. Gary Condit's
answers in last night's interview?
Yes
No
I didn't watch
Insert your own joke here
So, now I look at the polls the same way I look at the comics - for entertainment purposes only. YMMV.
- Brian
Back to my opinion page