At the beginning of each evening news broadcast, a local TV station invites viewers to respond to a question on a current issue via social media. At the end of the news program, results are shared with the audience. Many viewers would like to generalize the results to the geographical region where the news is broadcast. Which of the following is a potential source of bias in each night's results? I. Viewers with strong opinions about the current issue presented each night are more likely to respond via social media than viewers without strong opinions. II. The opinions of viewers of this television station's evening news broadcast are likely representative of the population in the geographical region where the local news is broadcast. III. Viewers with access to social media might not be representative of the population in the geographical region where the local news is broadcast. (A) I only (B) II only (C) III only (D) I and III (E) I, Il, and III
Question
At the beginning of each evening news broadcast, a local TV station invites viewers to respond to a question on a current issue via social media. At the end of the news program, results are shared with the audience. Many viewers would like to generalize the results to the geographical region where the news is broadcast. Which of the following is a potential source of bias in each night's results? I. Viewers with strong opinions about the current issue presented each night are more likely to respond via social media than viewers without strong opinions. II. The opinions of viewers of this television station's evening news broadcast are likely representative of the population in the geographical region where the local news is broadcast. III. Viewers with access to social media might not be representative of the population in the geographical region where the local news is broadcast. (A) I only (B) II only (C) III only (D) I and III (E) I, Il, and III
Solution
The correct answer is (E) I, II, and III.
I. This is a potential source of bias because those with strong opinions may be more likely to respond, skewing the results towards their viewpoint. This is known as self-selection bias.
II. This is a potential source of bias because the viewers of this particular news broadcast may not accurately represent the entire population of the geographical region. Their opinions could be influenced by the type of news the station broadcasts, their own personal beliefs, or a number of other factors.
III. This is a potential source of bias because not everyone in the geographical region may have access to social media or choose to use it. This could exclude a significant portion of the population from the survey, leading to biased results. This is known as non-response bias.
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