Politicians often site survey results in their speeches, but they may not have experience or training to evaluate those numbers. Kiannah Sepeda-Miller with the Better Government Association consulted UWSC Faculty Director Nora Cate Schaeffer about a survey that a politician was using to claim that 80% of the country is “living paycheck to paycheck.” Unfortunately, the details of where that percentage came from – who was asked and exactly what they were asked – are no longer available, so the politician’s claim cannot be evaluated easily. Schaeffer is quoted in the article as saying, “If you’re asking people to look at a percentage of any kind without providing a way for people to also get access to the underlying information about data collection, you’re really asking people to take something on faith.” UWSC, as a member of AAPOR’s Transparency Initiative, provides clients with critical information about the data that we collect.
Read the full article at: https://chicago.suntimes.com/business/fact-check-politifact-marie-newman-dan-lipinski-congress-hopefuls-paycheck-claim-bounces/