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**Grey Satterfield**

On 8/23/06 11:21 AM, in article
, "Jack Linthicum"
wrote:

Grey Satterfield wrote:
On 8/23/06 9:11 AM, in article
, "Jack Linthicum"
wrote:

Grey Satterfield wrote:
I could not help but note the puzzling headline in the linked piece,
"Lieberman and Lamont Tied in Connecticut," although the body of the piece
reveals that Lieberman still enjoys a two point lead, 44% to 42%. Even so,
it's an interesting report. It makes clear that the Republican candidate,
who has more baggage than a Skycap, is toast.

The theoretical margin of error for the total sample of 790 likely
voters is plus or minus 3.5 percentage points, 95% of the time, on
questions where opinion is evenly split. The theoretical margin of
error for the sample of 600 likely voters saying they always vote is
plus or minus 4 percentage points, 95% of the time, on questions where
opinion is evenly split.

Nope, it doesn't wash, it seems to me. If the report had been honest, its
headline would have said "Lamont and Lieberman in Statistical Tie," but it
didn't do that.

I can sense that you have never written a headline

Their may be something to the excuse Jack posits for the pollster's
headline, so let's try this. Suppose I should concede that the pollster
wrote the headline in good faith and that it was reasonably fair. Would
Jack then concede that ABC News's headline, "Kerry Calls Lieberman the New
Cheney," was also written in good faith and was also reasonably fair? I'll
bet I already know the answer.

Grey Satterfield