Fake Manufactured Polls

Polling industry scrutinized after firm admits it ‘fabricated’ data

Wedgewood Polls claimed that it manufactured fraudulent polling data as part of a social experiment to demonstrate the lack of verification in the polling industry and mainstream media.

Just two weeks before midterm elections on Nov. 3, a polling firm widely cited by mainstream news outlets admitted that it fabricated polling data.

Wedgewood Polls confirmed in an Oct. 20 press release that it is a “fictional entity” that published “fabricated numbers” and “unverified figures,” claiming that the polling firm was created as “an experimental project to demonstrate the vulnerabilities, lack of oversight, and overall low barrier to entry in the modern political polling industry.”

The 17 polls manufactured by Wedgewood since June were cited in outlets such as The New York Times and MSNOW and included in polling aggregators such as Decision Desk HQ, VoteHub, and FiftyPlusOne.

Decision Desk HQ reported afterward that it has removed all 17 Wedgewood polls cited in its aggregates, but added that the “removal of these polls has not changed the projected seat totals or chamber control probabilities in the Senate or House.” Of course.

Read about the fake polls