Blogs Blamed for Exit Poll Fiasco

AP ^ | 11.03.04

[4kevin]

News organizations promised Wednesday to look into why their Election Day exit polls showed an initial surge for John Kerry, but also blamed bloggers for spreading news that gave a misleading view of the presidential race. The exit poll data was delivered at several points Tuesday to ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox News Channel and The Associated Press by the National Election Pool, a company formed in the wake of the networks' blown calls on election night 2000.... The Florida and Ohio exit poll results, along with those in other states where Kerry was strong, was quickly disseminated on websites such as Slate, the Drudge Report, Wonkette.com, Atrios.blogspot.com and Command Post. Some of these sites cautioned readers not to make too much of the information. The Command Post delivered the news under the headline "Grain of Salt." Drudge removed the numbers almost as quickly as they were posted. And Slate warned: "These early exit poll numbers do not divine the name of the winner."

[swilhelm73]

So an ex-CBS hack working for the networks releases false exit polling data on the internet...and the press tries to blame it on the people it was leaked to???

[ml1954]

So the looks on the faces of all those MSM people on TV were the 'blogs' fault. LOL.

[SouthernFreebird]

Bottom line is the democrats will never be able to use the exit polls to dampen a turnout again. Fool me once...

[nuconvert]

The network people weren't wearing their pajamas.

[Dog]

They will try to blame it on the bloggers.

[walford]

What blogs were those? I was monitoring FR and this one:
http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/viewforum.php?f=14
[a good place to argue with Eurowussies (that is what they call themselves on that forum)]

I was also flipping through the neworks, but mostly Fox news. None of these sources were even citing exit polling. Likely they were following data such as these sources:

http://network.ap.org/dynamic/files/specials/election_night_2004/us_map_govsenhouse/index.html?SITE=CSPANELN&SECTION=POLITICS

http://news.yahoo.com/electionresults

[Prime Choice]

News organizations promised Wednesday to look into why their Election Day exit polls showed an initial surge for John Kerry, but also blamed bloggers for spreading news that gave a misleading view of the presidential race.

This plays badly for the "mainstream" (sic) media two ways. First, it is a tacit admission that the bloggers are now equally (if not moreso) credible than the "old media." Secondly, the data that was leaked came from old media sources.

The old media is trying to scapegoat the new media in hopes that they can generate sympathy for federal regulation of the new media.

Sorry, little Leftists...ain't gonna happen. So quit whining. It makes you look dumb...er.

[jcwky]

And the MSM grinning like the Cheshire cat while reporting based upon these "leaked" exit polls, they wouldn't be at fault at all now would they????

They still don't get it Jim,

[Jedidah]

If leaking the early exit polls was an attempt to help Kerry build momentum, it backfired big time.

I was in a battleground state, working as part of the RNC 72 Hour Get Out the Vote effort. I can tell you that when that info came in, the Bush volunteers went into overdrive. Our phone banks were still operating at 6:50 p.m., telling targeted Republican voters to get in line if they had not yet voted. I imagine that the same thing happened in all battleground states. The GOP had its act together. The exit poll data likely increased Bush turnout and depressed Kerry's. I mean, would you go stand in line for hours to vote for someone who had already won?

[johnnyb_61820]

Bloggers are getting the venom that Rush got in the 90s

[Innisfree]

Blame the victim! The predictable, cheap liberal smear tactic.

[LibertarianInExile]

Never a mea culpa, always a you-a culpa.

[marty60]

That would be a big mistake. Rush was one person. Millions are on the internet. If they want a proctological exam EVERYDAY, keep it up.

[NotJustAnotherPrettyFace]

Dick Morris is really going after the exit poll scandal with a vengance!! [POST #70 by OH Swing Voter

To: Nascardude

Actually, I think a Democrat operative somehow knew which polling places were going to be exit polled. I have been registered as a Democrat for many years (in Ohio) and I was called the night before the election by a Democrat operative (who did not know that I have turned away from them)--I was told that there would be exit polling at my voting place--and I was advised to be there between 10-11 am and to make sure that I answered the questions of the exit poller.

I couldn't do this--as I had already voted early so that I could spend the day working on get out the vote for the GOP. But I suspect that somehow the DemonRats knew which places were to be polled and when--and they made sure that there were plenty of enthusiastic Dems there at the appropriate time--willing and primed to participate in exit polling. They CHEATED! And yes--I did complain--but with all the fraud they commit--who knows?

My daughter is Ca had already voted when she heard about 3pm Ca time--that the Pres had lost all the swing states. She said she felt like she had been hit in the stomach--it is a good thing she had already voted because she completely lost heart---the tone of the early coverage was entirely--where did the Bush campaign go wrong? Will we look back and say that his performance in the first debate was where the tide turned against him? How will Kerry handle Iraq? Who will serve in Kerry's cabinet? She thought it was lost for sure until REAL data started coming in.

There was also a brief conversation with sKerry early in the day--where he said that he hoped the president would accept the results without litigation--as he would. It was obvious that at that point he thought a win was in the bag.

Then--when sKerry the flip-flopper found out he had lost--he of course considered litigation until he discovered it would hurt him more than help him.

NO ONE in my family will EVER vote DemonRat again.

70 posted on 11/04/2004 1:52:00 PM CST by OH Swing Voter

[Jose Roberto]

Well, thank God for those false exit polls. I was in Miami on election day after voting by absentee ballot in CT...when the false exit polls came out about 2 PM...Radio Mambi, the Cuban Radio Station in Miami cancelled its regular programming and went on a non-stop telethon imploring the Cuban community to overwhelmingly vote for Bush. It was anticipated that the Cubans would vote about 65-70% for the President but thanks to Radio Mambi, the Cubans left their work, left their schools, left their homes and overwhelmingly voted for Bush at a clip of 88%!!!! And that gave Florida to Bush and the Senate to Martinez. In Orlando, the Puerto Ricans voted massively for Bush so the President got a total of 55% of the vote, or 12% better that he had done against Gore.

[NotJustAnotherPrettyFace]

FR Post on this:

GUESS WHO DID THE EXIT POLLS...[Mitofsky International]

Mitofsky International is a survey research company founded by Warren J. Mitofsky in 1993. Its primary business is conducting exit polls for major elections around the world. It does this work exclusively for news organizations. Mitofsky has directed exit polls and quick counts since 1967 for almost 3,000 electoral contests in United States, Mexico, Russia and the Philippines.

....

From 1967 to 1990, Mitofsky was executive director of the CBS News election and survey unit, and was an executive producer of its election night broadcasts. He conducted the first exit polls for CBS in 1967, and developed the projection and analysis system used successfully by CBS and Voter News Service. He started the CBS News/New York Times Poll in 1975 and directed it for CBS for its first 15 years.

(Excerpt) Read more at mitofskyinternational.com ...

[Lancey Howard]

I can tell you that when that info came in, the Bush volunteers went into overdrive. Our phone banks were still operating at 6:50 p.m., telling targeted Republican voters to get in line if they had not yet voted.

Ah-HAAA! This sounds exactly like another dirty trick dreamed up by that wascally Kawl Wove.

[Revolting cat!]

Let me tell you a secret about exit polls. The cat family votes in an ultra leftist precinct (fell sorry for the poor felines.) Until Tuesday, I had never seen an exit pollster at my polling station. An exit poll there would never reveal anything unexpected or represent anything other than a small sample of loony Left voters. On Tuesday, a big fatso sat there with a couple of clipboards at 7AM when the cat voted, and was there later, visibly exhausted, bent low in his metal chair, at 6:30PM when I walked by. He wasn't stopping anyone when I exited at 7:30, rather voters were approaching him. And he had a blue LA Slimes apron on.

[onevoter]

You say, "Bottom line is the democrats will never be able to use the exit polls to dampen a turnout again. Fool me once... "

So true - the networks drove people in the panhandle and in the western states to give up early (no doubt intentionally) in the last election and thought Americans would be foolish enough to fall for it a second time. Fortunately, after four years of the MSM blaming Bush for everything from hurricanes to a flu-shot shortage, they have finally reached a point where their credibility is COMPLETELY shot!