I am not a big fan of opinion polls, because I think I have the common sense and the knowledge to decide by myself whom I should vote for. I also don't want any marketing firm to tell me what is the 'mood' of the nation. My vote is purely my vote and I don't care what others think of the prevailing state of affairs in my country.
Let us look at the latest PR exercise and spin done by a media house that I trust the least. The following are the reasons why I distrust this sham poll and will kick it out of my window:
- Interviews with a few thousand invisible Indians are not a scientific methodology. So, can you publish the methodology of the survery, including how it was analysed and conclusions arrived at.
- Why was the survey done only between Dec 30 and Jan 9. What prompted the agency to select this period? Why was this agency hired for the poll?
- What were the terms and conditions between the agency and the media house?
- What was the age profile of the respondents? Where they spread out or were they overwhelmingly the urban youth?
- What was the gender of the respondents?
- What were the educational qualifications of the respondents?
- How were the questions asked?
- Were the answers simple 'yes' or 'no'? If not, have you documented the alternative answers?
- What were you trying to prove with this poll?
Unless such details are shared with the public, these kind of polls serve the purpose of affirming the confirmation bias of the people the media is trying to placate.
The biggest evidence for the distrust in opinion polls and media coverage of politics and elections is the results of the US elections. So, come with better evidence and better disclosure of your methodology.
