President Trump: The NEW one and only politics thread

The "sir" is the tell.

 

Honestly? I'm not. I'm pretty objective. News agencies have absolutely become enslaved into anonymous sources across the industry. It's the biggest problem with journalism. It's probably worse in sports than anywhere else, too, agents using reporters to get pay increases for their players and coaches, etc. Institutions set narratives so much more than they ever did because journalism now is dictated by who wins on Twitter, a thing no one even pays for.

 

There have always been anonymous sources in journalism, including sports journalism. It ain't new. It's not even increasing. What's increased is the impact of news consumers such as yourself and me seeing multiple reporters on social media rather than purchasing one complete news outlet. This creates the illusion of a multiplying phenomenon.

 

I do agree with Alma in regards to polls. The 2016 election destroyed any trust I have in honest polling.

 

MSNBC and CNN cut away from Lindsey Graham, who is setting a record for longest opening statement. Fox is still with him.

 

Polls are not guarantees. They come with a built in margin of error. FWIW, the national polls in 2016 averaged a Clinton lead of 4 points and she finished 2 points ahead of Trump when the final votes were counted. That's hardly dishonest. It's reasonably accurate. Polls are expensive, and there are now fewer polls than before as the local media outlets that used to sponsor state polls shrink in number. Therefore, the chance of good faith error is higher, as there are fewer polls to average out to account for random difference. We all do know to poll average, right?

 

Any poll with a margin of error more than 4 points is not to be trusted as predicative. At least that's what I learned in my class on the subject way back in the olden days.

 

Yes it is. Of course it is. The increasing number of news outlets is part of why. But, c'mon. Anonymity is granted for almost anything now, especially in sports. You have anonymous sources leaking bowl matchups 20 minutes before they're announced. And then, as on Sunday when Kentucky didn't play in the Gator Bowl, they're wrong about it!

 

The problem with the polling was - and still is - that most "horse race" polls in general elections are nationwide - the nationwide polling for 2016 was actually quite good - what wasn't was the American people forgetting we don't elect on popular vote. News orgs would better serve the public if the only polling they did was Ohio, Florida, Pennsylvania, Iowa, Wisconsin, Colorado and Nevada. If you know what is happening in those seven states, you'll know who will be President.

 

I think people lie in the polls more than ever. That's the thing. They just lie. They lied in the 2004 exit polls for certain. I voted Kerry. (Actually, I voted Bush.)

We've reached a point where the idea of trolling, crossed with the idea of voters distrusting anyone asking them anything, has allowed us to arrive at this point.

 

My post was misguided. More about the 538s and sites of those ilk that did not seem to grasp that several states that were supposedly not in play to turn red most certainly were.

 

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