The 'Dirty Secrets' of Pollsters

[maplesyrup]

The 'Dirty Secrets' of Pollsters

The media polls that are driving this election may contain hidden flaws, veteran pollster Angus Reid warns.

Reid says that a combination of factors – including reduced media budgets for polling and the increasing reluctance of Canadians to talk to pollsters – could be harming the reliability of election polls.

He's particularly worried about the growing tendency of many Canadians to screen their phone calls and refuse to talk to pollsters – which can mean that a pollster has to make 10,000 phone calls to complete 1,000 interviews.

Such high refusal rates not only increase the cost of polling, but they may mean that pollsters end up interviewing people who are not representative of the general public.

"It's the big dirty secret of the industry," Reid said.

[Goldie]

Not to mention that I have obsereved, as we all have, that Ipsos puts one out that says Libs =32%, Tories=31% and that the Libs are ahead at 40% in Ont.

Herle says that the Libs are in a spiral on the same day as the poll is released.

Today Ekos puts one out that says Tories are 34% to the Libs 30% and also are behind in Ont. This would seem to more be accurate given what the Liberals are doing. I also noticed that the Bloq attacked the Conservatives for the fisrt time, could it be that they are now on the move in that province?