> This subtitle is inaccurate. Three in four Americans seeing a movie
> would be an unprecedented societal phenemonon. This is just a bogus
> claim, because the survey itself claims that perhaps 34% of Americans
> *might* see the movie. That would add up to roughly $600 million in
> sales.
I just heard today (on NPR, I think) a piece about how this works in polling for elections: some polling organizations have their telephone callers strongly push the interviewees who don't have strong preferences, or any preferences or all, to come up with one. "If you *had* to choose a candidate, who would it be?" and so on. Then they mark that choice as a firm preference. Thus, a lot of people who "might" vote for X, or who in fact probably don't know who the heck X is, get listed as supporters of X.
How could we guess how many of these folks who said they "might" see the movie actually will? I would say, very few.
Jon Johanning // jjohanning at igc.org __________________________________ When I was a little boy, I had but a little wit, 'Tis a long time ago, and I have no more yet; Nor ever ever shall, until that I die, For the longer I live the more fool am I. -- Wit and Mirth, an Antidote against Melancholy (1684)