Polling's 'spectacular disasters'

September 2, 2015

Cliff Zukin, who teaches public policy and political science at Rutgers, calls the pollsters’ misfires “spectacular disasters.”

He says they’re caused by two trends. First, a plummeting response rate. And second, the proliferation of cell phones. Pollsters aren’t allowed to mass dial them with computers; actual humans have to make every call. Zukin says that’s costly.

Marketplace Elections, September 2

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