ProLog

Another story, this time by the Chicago Tribune, musing about contradicting polling data over healthcare reform.  Some polls suggest support for the public option, others show dissatisfaction with the bills that provide it.  Either the data is wrong, the questions are inconclusive, or the respondents are idiots.  The author, Eric Zorn, and Mark Blumenthal believe it’s the latter.  It should be no surprise to these veterans that asking simple questions to people (of any IQ) about incredibly complex topics should lead to contradictory results.  It doesn’t make for the best media soundbites, but decomposing the problem into very small issues and building up a picture based on those ‘mini-responses’ may paint a clearer pictures.

But who would want to be on the phone that long with a pollster?

It’s been a battle cry for some time now.  “Open Source Polling” is the solution to what’s ailing a seemingly flagging industry.  But as with most catchy cliches, a useful definition is illusive.  In the aftermath of the 2004 mid-term elections, Mark Blumenthal comes close, but fails to capture the most important feature: openness.  Jeff Jarvis came closer, siting that polling should be (among other things) efficient, unbiased, free, and, above all, transparent.  These are some of the core tenets of proloquor.net, tenets we’ll explore in the coming weeks.  Stay tuned.