Yes or No?
Widely reported is an ABC poll that purports to show that most Americans support the judicial rulings in the Terri Schiavo case. The poll was conducted with a sample of about 500 respondents. Do you believe it? Should you?
Let me help you on this. Without getting into the discussion of whether or not the media is biased, I'll go straight to the numbers. I won’t bore you with the background, but a poll of 500 is absolutely unreliable. The math employed in probability informs us that 1,100 to 1,500 is necessary for credibility.
Second, ask yourself the following question, one that fairly describes the Terri Schiavo situation:
“As you may know, a woman in Florida named Terri Schiavo suffered brain damage and has been disabled for 15 years. Some doctors who have examined her say it is possible that her condition is reversible with therapy. Her parents and her husband disagree on whether or not she should be allowed to live. Her estranged husband wants her to die, but her parents want to take care of her and pay for therapy. In a case like this who do you think should have final say, (the parents) or (the spouse)?”
Naturally, this is not the question ABC asked. Here’s how they phrased it:
“As you may know, a woman in Florida named Terri Schiavo suffered brain damage and has been on life support for 15 years. Doctors say she has no consciousness and her condition is irreversible. Her parents and her husband disagree on whether or not she should be kept on life support. In cases like this who do you think should have final say, (the parents) or (the spouse)?”
Believe me, ABC did not tell us the question. Michelle Malkin (http://www.townhall.com/columnists/michellemalkin/mm20050323.shtml) broke that story. In fact, it is not the story you see reflected in the mainstream media. It takes a minimal amount of effort to find out that Terri has never had her own counsel; that she never indicated her wish to die not named Schiavo; that her friends quote her as saying, “Where there’s life, there’s hope;” that she was leaving her husband when the “accident” occurred, on witnessed only by her husband; that he remembered she wanted to die some seven years later, after he received a large settlement for her injuries.
Let me help you on this. Without getting into the discussion of whether or not the media is biased, I'll go straight to the numbers. I won’t bore you with the background, but a poll of 500 is absolutely unreliable. The math employed in probability informs us that 1,100 to 1,500 is necessary for credibility.
Second, ask yourself the following question, one that fairly describes the Terri Schiavo situation:
“As you may know, a woman in Florida named Terri Schiavo suffered brain damage and has been disabled for 15 years. Some doctors who have examined her say it is possible that her condition is reversible with therapy. Her parents and her husband disagree on whether or not she should be allowed to live. Her estranged husband wants her to die, but her parents want to take care of her and pay for therapy. In a case like this who do you think should have final say, (the parents) or (the spouse)?”
Naturally, this is not the question ABC asked. Here’s how they phrased it:
“As you may know, a woman in Florida named Terri Schiavo suffered brain damage and has been on life support for 15 years. Doctors say she has no consciousness and her condition is irreversible. Her parents and her husband disagree on whether or not she should be kept on life support. In cases like this who do you think should have final say, (the parents) or (the spouse)?”
Believe me, ABC did not tell us the question. Michelle Malkin (http://www.townhall.com/columnists/michellemalkin/mm20050323.shtml) broke that story. In fact, it is not the story you see reflected in the mainstream media. It takes a minimal amount of effort to find out that Terri has never had her own counsel; that she never indicated her wish to die not named Schiavo; that her friends quote her as saying, “Where there’s life, there’s hope;” that she was leaving her husband when the “accident” occurred, on witnessed only by her husband; that he remembered she wanted to die some seven years later, after he received a large settlement for her injuries.
posted by Rance Fasoldt at 6:10 AM
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