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Thursday 24 December 2009

The BBC updating the news (even further update)

The BBC Poll Tracker story has some new developments. First I have received a reply to my questioning email to the BBC. My query was:
"Why is your Poll Tracker still showing as its latest poll the ICM poll from 15 December that showed a reduced Conservative lead of 9%? Why have you not included the You Gov poll from last weekend that showed an increased Conservative lead of 12%? Do the BBC not have the resources to update Poll Tracker as and when new polls appear or are the BBC trying to protect the Labour party from adverse news?"

The reply is as follows:
"Dear Sir/Madam,

We have had some minor technical problems with the polltracker which are being rectified this morning. Both polls will shortly appear. Please be assured there is no intent to distort the data in favour of any of the main parties.

Regards

BBC News website"
I am intrigued as to what the "minor technical problems" might have been.

I am even more intrigued having looked at Poll Tracker this evening. Of course what the BBC appear to have done is waited until a poll more favourable to Labour has appeared because "The 'default' poll shown selected is the most recent added to our database". So ComRes's 22 December poll is the latest and the casual observer of Poll Tracker will only see a narrowing poll gap and be spared the horrors of a Conservative poll lead that they would have seen had the BBC not experienced "minor technical problems".

"Please be assured there is no intent to distort the data in favour of any of the main parties."
Yeah, right!

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