Talk:Push poll

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"Push poll questions are sometimes included in actual polls done by political parties. They are usually placed at the end of any such poll so as not to skew the results."

I've never heard of this practice, and strongly suspect that it's based on the common practice of testing negative messages in legitimate polls. Anyone have a citation or experience to back this up? RadicalSubversiv E 07:13, 16 Oct 2004 (UTC)

An article I read credited Karl Rove with inventing the push poll. Can anybody back this up? // Liftarn

I can tell you I had heard of push polling long before Rove came onto the national policital scene.

Could Lee Atwater (who taught Karl Rove) be credited with the creation of push polls? His article indicated that he used similar dirty tricks against Democratic politicians and such. --Blue387 02:38, 22 May 2005 (UTC)

Contents 1 Should this get a current event tag? 2 Conservative accusations of media push polling 3 My removal 4 Are push polls illegal? 5 I deleted incorrect information 6 Can someone suggest how to deal with push polls? 7 Removal of "Influencing media" section

[edit] Should this get a current event tag?

Was reading this article: NYT link. This seems like a pretty big deal, especially with the election in like 30 hours. Maxterpiece 07:52, 6 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Conservative accusations of media push polling

Conservatives have long accused the media of push polling. No one can debate that (that conservatives have made accusation.) The Terri Schiavo controversy is a prefect example. Where's the problem with that?

First of all, I can debate that -- I haven't noticed any particular pattern to the occassional ideological complaints about poll phrasing. Secondly, as the article makes clear, a push poll is not actually a poll (badly phrased or not), but a disguise for spreading negative information about a political candidadte to those being "surveyed". RadicalSubversiv E 14:43, 24 Apr 2005 (UTC)

"I haven't noticed any particular pattern to the occassional ideological complaints about poll phrasing" Given your involvement in left-wing politics (per your user page), is it possible you don't pay attention to those ideological complaints about the media? Secondly, if you don't define what the conservatives accuse the media of doing as push polling, what do you define the action as? Equinox137 15:13, 24 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Anything's possible, but please refrain from ad hominem arguments -- my point was that I hear just as much belly-aching about poll questions from the left as I do from the right. As to your second question, I call it "biased question phrasing skewing the results" -- that's not a push poll. RadicalSubversiv E 18:04, 24 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Ok, it's becoming clear that liberals run Wikipedia. The first time I've ever heard of push-polling is when Limbaugh and others accused CNN, NBC, CBS, etc. of push polling during the Clinton impeachment. Other times they've accused the media of push polling is during the Elian Gonzalez and Terri Schiavo controveries. In fact, I found this article though the Terri Schiavo article, where the media was accused of doing that very thing (ref. the Zogby poll after she died). I'm not attempting to validate any of their accusations, just state that they've made them. I don't know how you can claim to be an expert on push polling when you yourself said on just 16 Oct 2004 that you have never heard of the practice. I still haven't heard how what they've been accused of doing isn't push polling, but since I've been out edited by liberals such as Radicalsubversiv and Gamaliel, I think I'll drop it. Equinox137 15:38, 24 Apr 2005 (UTC)

I said I hadn't heard of the practice of tagging on a push poll to the end of an otherwise legitimate poll. The Schiavo article misuses the term (using an obscure blog as a citation). RadicalSubversiv E 18:04, 24 Apr 2005 (UTC)

If you're referring to the Zogby Poll, it isn't a blog. The Zogby Poll more accurately predicted the 1996 and 2000 Presidental elections along with the 1998 Congressional elections that CCN/Gallup or any of the other polls. Zogby has been around a lot longer than blogs. And the Schiavo article (unless it's been "corrected") stated ALL of those polls were push polls. I'm still waiting to hear what you'd define the practice as, if it's not push polling... Equinox137 19:10, 24 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Please read my comments more carefully. I didn't say anything about the Zogby poll. You are correct that there are often disputes over the question wording used in public opinion polls. That doesn't make them push polls, which refers to a very specific campaign practice explained accurately in this article. That some obscure blogger is misusing the term is irrelevant. This whole matter is explained very well by professional pollster Mark Blumenthal here. RadicalSubversiv E 19:51, 24 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Ok, I DID read your comments carefully, I didn't interpret them the way you intended. Would a separate article on "journalistic push polling," which would cover question wording used, suffice? or is that going to get nuked too? 23:22, 24 Apr 2005 (UTC)

I did read the link after you sent it though, interesting... Equinox137 23:26, 24 Apr 2005 (UTC)

If you want to expand Wikipedia's coverage of this subject, the appropriate location is probably Opinion poll#Wording of questions. Starting a new article using a novel variation on an incorrectly-used term would not be helpful for readers. RadicalSubversiv E 23:29, 24 Apr 2005 (UTC)

POV should be welcome here in Talk, just as long as it's tamed in the articles. If I may, why not dig for the references to push polling by Mr. Limbaugh & in ref to the Elian Gonzalez case? I, for one, want to see both sides. Do you folks need a 3rd party (me) to do it? Also, should we me making reference to wiki items such as propaganda, framing (communication theory), Code word (figure of speech), etc.?--ghost 14:55, 25 Apr 2005 (UTC)

[edit] My removal

I removed

Critics of the mainstream media often accuse such news outlets of push polling - in order to achieve the results they desire and report that as "news" (i.e. the Terri Schiavo controversy)

This doesn't fit the definition of a push poll--a push poll is not designed to be reported or anything else. It's certainly possible that the media used slanted polling during the Schiavo case, but that's not a push poll. Meelar (talk) 15:00, Apr 25, 2005 (UTC)

Perhaps "push poll" not the correct definition for this phenomenon, but there's a lot to tell about this kind of thing. How would that have to be called? Salaskan 19:28, 19 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Are push polls illegal?

Are push polls illegal? --Blue387 06:40, 18 May 2005 (UTC)

Technically, no. And legislating something to that effect in the US would be problematic, as it would run right into the 1st Amendment to the US Constitution. However, they ARE generally accepted to be unethical. But, since when have ethics bothered politicians... ;-) --ghost 15:55, 19 May 2005 (UTC)

In all seriousness, they're not illegal, no. However, most reputable pollsters won't run them, and go out of their way to avoid them. Meelar (talk) 16:22, May 19, 2005 (UTC)

[edit] I deleted incorrect information

Any poll that does not ask demographic information – such as age, income, or race – is generally not a legitimate poll.

This is simply incorrect. Legitimate campaign polling in the united states generally does not ask for such information - the information is known to the pollsters before the calls are made.

No, that is correct. Legitimate pollsters work off lists, but basic questions are needed to confirm that the correct person was contacted, and that demographic information is correct. Currently, campaigns have access to a wealth of data through public information, Claritas neighborhood surveys, and other sources. Age is generally listed on the voter form, and race can be inferred from last name. However, individually identifying information about finances and race is generally assumed and not available. Calwatch 05:43, 28 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Can someone suggest how to deal with push polls?

I just got a call from a pollster that reputed to be an unbiased opinion poll. After four short questions such as "Do you consider yourself a republican or democrat? Do you favor gun control? etc I got a question on a very politically sensitive topic. But the responses were not, in my opinion, unbiased at all. After objecting to the question I asked the pollster where he was calling from. After some heated discussion I asked to talk to a supervisor. I found out the call was from the state headquarters of a local political party. How can I protest this? Should political parties be required to publish a ethics policy on their used of push polls and opinion polls? Can anyone add a section on dealing with push polls?

Thanks --Dan 19:42, 8 February 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Removal of "Influencing media" section

I removed the section on influencing media because the example cited--of particular wording slanting a result in one direction--is not a push poll. Remember--push polls aren't actually polls. Instead, they're telemarketing efforts that disguise themselves as polls. The example cited might be better off in the article on opinion polls, in a section about the impact of question wording on responses. Meelar (talk) 19:29, 19 March 2007 (UTC)

I agree with the removal, those types of polls are biased but they are not push polls. - SimonP 21:24, 19 March 2007 (UTC)