Public polls versus professional surveys have become increasingly popular tools to gauge an opinion or attitude on any given topic. This can range from deciding the outcome of an election or sporting event to helping companies decide which product to bring to market.
True Representation of the People?
On the positive side, public polls are typically open to anyone who would like to share their opinion. This means that the opinions gathered should be more true to what the general public is actually thinking rather than being based off of predetermined criteria. This level of freedom allows for a higher degree of feedback and more honest responses, instead of people feeling the need to conform to what the company wants the results to be.
Risk of Manipulation
However, public polls also carry the risk of manipulation due to the lack of checks and balances. If pollsters fail to properly vet the validity of participants or properly secure their polling framework, it leaves the door open for malicious actors to manipulate the results and present an inaccurate representation of public sentiment. This could have serious implications in the form of skewed decision making that fails to take into account the true








