Political polls

Behind the Data

Political polls are in our faces these days whether we want them or not -- especially if you're in the US during election season. We talk with polling expert and database journalist Dhrumil Mehta of Columbia University (formerly Nate Silver's FiveThirtyEight) about how to think about polls. Are they all just noise? Do they tell the future? Something in the middle? Join us to explore where political polls come from, how to evaluate them, and how to make the most of the information they offer.

Materials referenced in the show:

• Example polling tracker from Nate Silver (Dhrumil and Andrea did not work on this version directly, but it is a "descendant" of a model they did work on.)
• Nate Silver article, "The Media Has a Probability Problem", FiveThirtyEight
• Harry Enten article, "Fake Polls are a Real Problem", FiveThirtyEight
• Harry Enten article, "Trump is Just a Normal Polling Error Behind Clinton", FiveThirtyEight
• Dhrumil's polls LLM: http://pollfinder.ai

More about Andrea here and on Instagram. More about Dhrumil here and on X.

Behind the Data is a podcast that uncovers the hidden stories within the data shaping our world. From political polls to global happiness trackers, we dive into the datasets that influence the decisions we make—while showing you why data isn’t just numbers, but a way to understand the world. Whether you're a data newbie or a seasoned pro, each episode makes complex data approachable, revealing surprising insights and the human side of every dataset. Come for the discoveries, stay for the stories.

We are proud to be part of the Daily Tech News Show network of podcasts.

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