On January 10th, the Courant published an editorial which criticized the role and effect of polls in the electoral process, saying:
Poll-watching and premature analysis tend to reduce this quadrennial exercise in self-determination to the level of a sports contest.
Today, at the top of the front page, in bold headlines, the Courant declares the favorites in the upcoming presidential primary, declaring:
Connecticut Favorites - Choices are Clear, For Now.
I guess that "for now" absolves them from using polls as predictive news, but they have shamefully ignored the advice their editors offered a week ago. Keep a record of the poll numbers and we'll see just how wrong the Courant is a few weeks from now, and whether they'll offer an apology for misleading readers. Of course, if they end up being correct, they can be accused of affecting the outcome.
So, just as editors advised, it's safer not to emphasize polls, which have proven so unreliable in the past.
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