Recently, an Associated Press (AP) poll claimed that the majority of economists believed the then-looming sequester would be disastrous for the US economy. Since I am working on a story that involves responsible journalism, I took it upon myself to call the AP in New York City to ask them which economists they polled and how many of them actually participated in this poll.
I was given the name of Trevor Thompson in Washington as the individual responsible and made a call to him, at which point I was told by the Associated Press Washington Bureau that Mr. Thompson no longer worked for them. I was promptly transferred to Jen Agiesta, who is the individual now in charge at the DC bureau. I informed Ms. Agiesta that I was doing a story for the Independent Gazette and would like to know how many economists were polled and their identities. Her response?
“Well, it was not a poll, per se; it was more of a survey. We surveyed our business writers.”
So, this was the “poll” that was reported by main stream media as reliable—as news. I am convinced now, more than ever, that our very own, “The All American in God We Trust Poll” is as accurate as, if not more accurate than any poll reported by the Associated Press.
Just another reason why you don’t want to miss out on the expanded edition of the April WBIG hitting the streets April 2nd.
