Public-Interest Polling - What's That?

The motivations of poll sponsors are key to understanding the difference between public-interest polling and private interest polling. There are some basic similarities and differences. Public-interest polling requires high quality, random sample polling. Private interest polling is of similar high quality and generally uses the many techniques for accuracy that private clients want. Dwarfing political polling, most private interest polling is market research. Market research is conducted for corporations, which, of course, seek to sell products. There is a spillover tendency for commercial pollsters, who generally do much more market than political research, to help sell politicians the same way they help sell soap.   Private Interest Polling Polls for candidates on the campaign trail, elected officials and their political parties have these private-interest motivations: to find their best winning style and language, playing up strengths and ignoring weaknesses, i.e. to find out what to say to get elected and re-elected,   to help bury information harmful to themselves or their agencies/departments,   to select and assist candidates to put the party in a dominant position,   to get attention and favorable coverage from mainstream media,   to change the attention and the agenda of the nation to suit their private interests Candidates know what they want to do if elected. It's common knowledge now. Officials make policy and legislative decisions to support their most valued financial backers. They generally do not know and are never interested in giving attention or prominence to any conflicting policies or legislation that the public itself wants. Media For its part mainstream media want to cover poll results they perceive to be of interest to their public audiences, guided in part by subscription and advertising revenues. They also feel they often need to accommodate high officials who decide to keep secrets from the public or who grant access and interviews to supportive reporters, editors, anchors, and moguls.   Public-Interest Polling Public-interest pollsters are motivated to search for the truth to uncover and confirm what the public itself wants for governance by offering a wide range of clear and distinct choices,   being careful not to lead the witness (cue the respondent),   noting and properly allowing for effects of question frames, lead-ins and small or not so small changes in the meaning of specific policy choices,   testing and re-testing findings with new samples   neither talking down to respondents nor using language that is confusing, ambiguous, or counter-factual. Policy Organizations Policy organizations can serve either private interests or the public-interest. Since the great majority of pollsters, pr firms, experts, and others employed by policy organizations are accustomed to operating in the private interest world, sponsors who are not alert may believe that they are getting public-interest findings, but often are not. Private interests, including politicians themselves when they are addressing the public, are often extremely slick, smooth, and persuasive stating (and giving the impression) that they are dedicated to the public-interest.

 
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