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The Measurement Maven and Menace of the Month Awards

The Measurement Mavens of the Month:

The Brits
Doing a jolly good job of measurement.

While I don't agree with everything that researchers in the UK subscribe to, I have to admit that I am more and more impressed by the thought that goes into measurement in the UK. From Metrica's Consumer Pulse study (see here, too) and Measurement Matters blog, to the rigorous methodology that they use to determine public opinion, you can't help but be impressed by these guys.

When I asked Philip Dewhurst from Gazprom if he was tying his PR results to outcomes, he could immediately cite evidence from his German counterparts. And even though I may disagree with their content analysis methodology, I have to admit that Report International has certainly put more thought into it than most of my American colleagues. So pip pip and all that: Let's raise a pint to our cousins across the pond for doing some jolly good work. --KDP

The Measurement Menaces of the Month:

The Pollsters and Media Outlets That Knowingly Produce Faulty Polls
Relying on flawed polls conducted by biased media is not the way to run a democracy.

If one accepts the premise that polling is a necessary requirement of democracy, then it is imperative that polls accurately reflect the opinion of the people. In England this is such a fundamental foundation of democracy that all polling is done door-to-door. Sadly, in America we have sacrificed accuracy for the speed of phone and Internet polls. We increasingly find the results seriously flawed, as David Moore has shown so well in The Opinion Makers. (Read our review of this excellent and recommended book here.)

But it's not just the pollsters that are to blame, it's also the media who pay for the polls. The media's job is to sell space, airtime and newspapers. And admitting that polls include the 80% of Americans who haven't yet made up their minds doesn't sell more of anything. So polls persist in asking the wrong questions, biasing results, and misleading both the public and politicians. What good is a vote if it's based on flawed data?

If ever there was the epitome of a Measurement Menace, this is it. It's time that Americans either fix the system or come up with a new one. Clearly, relying on flawed polls conducted by biased media is not the way to run a democracy. --KDP

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