Abstract
This paper describes how the National Post regularly excludes polling details that are essential to an accurate reading of the data. It then looks at how business and labour issues are covered in the paper and shows that opinion polls are manipulated to confer popular legitimacy upon the economic conservatism of the Post’s editors. It concludes by arguing that while polls may be presented as a form of direct democracy, they are more aptly regarded as promoting a phony populism: the use of popular idioms to mask an elite project. Although opinion-poll results are presented as the unfiltered expressions of popular sentiment, they are in fact regularly manipulated by media outlets. I find that rather than giving voice to the general population, polls in the National Post are routinely used to “manufacture consent” for the viewpoints of the corporate and political elite, while misrepresenting popular opinion.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
