Public Opinion Polling and Public Conversation

1. Polling first appeared as an instrument in 1936 as a "science"
   1. George Gallup believed in the collective wisdom of everyday citizens
      1. He distrusted intellectuals and experts
      2. Thought elite rule and democratic government were incompatible
   2. The challenge for democracy: common people needed to have a means of expressing their basic needs and purposes to the leaders
   3. He saw polls as the instrument.
      1. Poll results were a mandate from the people, a concrete expression of the policies the public desired the government to enact.
      2. The scientific poll gave clarity, crispness and reliability to mass opinion.
      3. No longer could failure to take seriously popular preferences ewhen enacting pulbic policy be justified by claims that public opinion is unknowable.
2. First attack (Blumer): public opinion could not be reduced to a nose count among citizens.
   1. Not all opinions were public opinion; only those surfacing in a public forum and taken seriously by those with power and influence.
      1. Public opinion emerged from the interactions and communications among functioning groups that percolated through society and come to the attention of society.
      2. These interactions and communications were not aggregations of individual opinions, but an organic whole of interacting interrelated parts.
3. Second Attack: Public lacked capacity to do what Gallup wanted them to. The duty of elected representatives is to follow their conscience and best judgements, not be slaves to the moments of popular passion.
4. Public Opinion v. Political Conversation
   1. Public opinion as we define and measure it today is inherently individualistic: we measure it one person at a time, sum it up, and call it ``public.''
   2. Political talk among citizens is the fundamental building block of citizenship. How many people talk about politics and political ideas with their friends and neighbors? Why ? What do you talk about?
   3. Kinds of political talk
      1. Persuasion
      2. Bargaining
      3. Explaining and understanding
      4. Community (group) development (development and explication of shared values and interests)
      5. Some think this last is necessary to a sound democratic society.
   4. Problem: Ordinary people don't engage in much political talk
      1. Public Sphere
         1. The notion of a place frequented by ordinary people to express themselves, learn something about the views of others, feel empowered by the opportunities for expression, and learn that the grievances they feel are shared by others, is an important stimulant to participating actively in the political processes.
         2. Such "places" seem to have been crucial in providing the spark to the women's movement, the civil rights movement, the anti-war movement.
      2. Where is the "public sphere" today?
         1. The internet?
         2. Talk radio?
         3. Faxing/calling C-Span?