Morrison-Cronkite Quarterly Poll to launch Tuesday

Morrison Institute for Public Policy and the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication today announced a partnership for quarterly statewide poll results on key issues, with the initial survey’s release scheduled for next week.

Findings from the first poll will be released in two parts: Feb. 24 and March 3.  The first segment gauges the state’s top priorities according to respondents (754 Arizona adults, a representative sample of the state’s voting-age population), while the second segment measures public opinion on other key issues.

“Morrison Institute has done polling in the past, but this is the first time we’ll be conducting such surveys on a consistent basis,” said Thom Reilly, director of Morrison Institute at Arizona State University. “Quarterly polls also will allow us to track public opinion over time to measure evolving or changing viewpoints.”

Christopher Callahan, dean of ASU’s Cronkite School, said there is a need in Arizona for credible polling of public sentiment regarding such issues as education, immigration, taxation and election reform.

“Elected officials can use polls to gauge their constituency’s desires,” Callahan said. “But polls also can be a useful reporting tool to inform the public where their neighbors stand on a particular subject. They can provide a great snapshot of layered and nuanced opinion among voters, non-voters, men and women, Republicans, Democrats and Independents.”

The Morrison-Cronkite Quarterly Poll also will be a valuable teaching tool for student journalists on how to build and recognize a credible poll, as well as how to interpret and report polls, he added.

David Daugherty, associate director at Morrison Institute, will oversee the polling. Daugherty has more than 30 years of experience in conducting surveys and public opinion polls.

“The essential ingredients for reliable polls are methodology, credibility, transparency and utility,” he said, noting that Morrison-Cronkite Quarterly Polls will feature all those elements.

The polls will be made available to news media and the public alike via news stories, websites and email blasts.