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AJC: ‘Our poll is better.’

campaign coverage Decatur

AJC: ‘Our poll is better.’

State Sen. Jason Carter, D-42
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State Sen. Jason Carter, D-42

State Sen. Jason Carter, D-42

The Atlanta Journal Constitution says poll results commissioned by its sister company, WSB-TV, are more reliable than poll results commissioned by a competitor, 11 Alive.

The WSB-TV poll also reached a completely different conclusion, showing two top Democratic candidates ahead of their Republican opposition. The AJC and WSB-TV are owned by Cox Media Group, a fact the article doesn’t mention as of 11:13 am Saturday, Aug.23.

TV station 11 Alive commissioned a Survey USA poll that showed the Democratic candidates, state senator and gubernatorial candidate Jason Carter and U.S. Senate candidate Michelle Nunn, are far behind their Republican opponents, incumbent Gov. Nathan Deal and senate candidate David Perdue.

Survey USA’s poll showed Deal beating Carter, 48 percent to 39 percent. The same poll also showed Perdue ahead of Nunn 50 percent to 41 percent.

The WSB-TV poll, conducted by Landmark Communications, showed Carter ahead of Deal, 44 percent to 40 percent and Nunn ahead of Perdue, 47 percent to 40 percent.

AJC says the poll commissioned by WSB-TV is more reliable.

“The Survey USA poll was a combination of automated calls to land lines, and an Internet questionnaire conducted via smart phones or other devices,” the AJC article says. “The Landmark survey employed live interviews via land lines and cell phones – generally considered the “gold standard” in polling.”

To read the AJC’s analysis of the polling data commissioned by its sister company, click here.

Here’s how Survey USA obtained its results:

“Survey USA interviewed 1,100 state of Georgia adults 08/14/14 through 08/17/14. Of the adults, 953 were registered to vote. Of those registered to vote, 560 were determined by Survey USA to be likely to vote in the 11/04/14 general election. This research was conducted using blended sample, mixed mode. Respondents reachable on a home telephone (72 percent of likely voters) were interviewed on their home telephone in the recorded voice of a professional announcer. Respondents not reachable on a home telephone (28 percent of likely voters) were shown a questionnaire on their tablet, smartphone, or other portable device.”

To read the full results from Survey USA, click here.

Survey USA also conducted polling in the race for state school superintendent. The Survey USA poll found that School Superintendent candidate Valarie Wilson, formerly a member of the City Schools of Decatur Board of Education, trailed Republican candidate Richard Woods, 51 percent to 39 percent.

The WSB-TV poll doesn’t appear to have asked voters about the state superintendent’s race. If it had, it’s safe to assume the AJC would’ve judged those results superior to those produced by WSB-TV’s competitor, 11 Alive.

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