I was called for a CNN poll and one of the questions was really weird. What does this tell them?

[gollygee]

Most of it was normal political stuff, but then they asked whether we have an old landline phone in our house that we aren't using. I thought no so I said no, but then I later remembered that we actually do have one. So what in the world of data analysis would this tell them?

[Timewas]

1. Actually

A lot of "surveys" are set up to sound one way when in fact they are only looking for data on one specific thing and will ask a lot of different questions that sound like that is what they are interested in and then throw in a question that seems out of place and that is really all they are interested in

[gollygee]

8. I suppose that's possible. nt

[RDANGELO]

2. They are probably finding it increasingly hard to find people with landline phones.

People with landline phones tend to be more conservative which is why they try to get both. They may be trying to find out what is going on so that they can be more accurate.

We disconnected ours within the last six months.

[gollygee]

7. We don't use a landline. We have an old unused on in the house

and that's what they were asking - whether we still had an old unused one in a closet somewhere or anything.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

3. If you look at the methodology page there will be a breakdown between cellphone and landline users.

[gollygee]

5. The question wasn't whether we used a landline, it was whether we had an old unused one somewhere.

They called on my cell phone.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

9. Did they ask who you were going to vote for?

If yes it means there will be a poll coming out soon.

I assume they asked you your race, education, income, et cetera.

[gollygee]

11. It was an approval poll

approve/disapprove of the way Donald Trump is handling the pandemic
and how he handles a lot of other stuff, like BLM, immigration, etc.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

13. Surprised there was no horse race question.

[gollygee]

14. Just whether I considered myself a Democrat or a Republican. Not who I would vote for. nt

[stopbush]

4. Voter - phone - landline - camera - TV

They were testing your memory...and you failed. 😱

[gollygee]

6. LOL! nt

[MontanaMama]

15. Okay that made me laugh.

[gopiscrap]

10. there a 3 people in our household

and we have 3 cell phones haven't had a landline since 2007 there are looking for landline users so they can rig the pole landline users tend to be more conservative

[gollygee]

12. We don't have a landline and that wasn't the question

We have 4 people and 3 have cell phones - one isn't quite old enough yet. They wanted to know if we had an old one we aren't using sitting in a closet or something. They called on the cell phone.

[MontanaMama]

16. Such an odd question.

An old land line you aren’t using? If you had a land line and was usable...meaning you would plug a phone in and would get a dial tone. I guess some people might have that...but if so, it is a service they are paying for and not using. I would think it isn’t common for folks to pay for a land line and leave it unused. The weird thing is...the “land line” probably isn’t sitting in a closet. Sounds like whoever was asking the question didn’t word it well, or maybe doesn’t even know what a land line is or does!

[gollygee]

18. An old landline phone. Not specifically the phone line, but the phone that would go with one.nt

[MontanaMama]

21. Oh I get it now.

That’s even an odder question!

[gollygee]

22. Yes, that's what I thought

I can't imagine what that means.

[ProfessorGAC]

17. Not Sure That's True Any More

Cellphones are ubiquitous. Older, SS dependent folks have jitterbug or Citizen's Cellular and ditched the land line to save money.
We have a VOIP landline, but we definitely wouldn't be classified as conservative.
Two cells & a landline for us.
I know you said "tend" but that seems to be shifting.
Look at Rasmussen polls. Yes, they've made some changes to be less landline dependent, but Biden's smoking PINO in their polls.

[gopiscrap]

19. I agree with you because my personal experience has borne such results as these

but I think a lot of the polling mind set, specially polls that want to get a specific answer still think the trend is that landline only users are more conservative than liberal

[ProfessorGAC]

20. Likely Correct

I think they're wrong, but yes, they probably do still think that way.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

23. I agree that was an odd question.

Especially since they didn't seem to care if you actually had a landline itself, just a phone that could be plugged into one.

Personally, I keep both a landline and a cell phone because there are times when the cell towers will be down (think 9/11, think Katrina) and if you don't have a landline you're screwed. Conversely, in a normal power outage, the landline won't work and you want to have a cell phone.

[gollygee]

24. Kick to find out if anyone knows what this question indicates.

[Hekate]

25. For years (maybe even a couple of decades) it has been obvious that the younger demographics...

...don’t use landlines at all. Therefore traditional telephone polls skew older and more conservative.

You might have just lucked into one of the first efforts by pollsters to find out if what we already knew was true, is indeed true.

[Hekate]

26. Another angle: those who bought out phone companies don't want to maintain the apparatus any more

It used to be a given that telephones were a Public Utility, like gas lines to your house, and that you could have a repairman come to your home and fix a problem — for free.

Not any more.

[JHB]

27. Just top clarify, from some of your comments above...

When they asked about a "landline phone" were they specifically asking about a device? Or could that have meant "landline" (for anyone who wouldn't necessarily recognize the term all by itself but would recognize "landline phone" vs. "cell phone" )?

In other words, were they asking if you have an old phone in the attic or garage, or if the house still has a landline that nobody uses?

For a number of years I had a landline I didn't use, as I became more and more accustomed to relying on the cell phone. Eventually I dropped the landline because nobody called me on it except groups asking for money, and the connection had become terrible and staticy. When reviewing my expenses, my rationales for maintaining it had evaporated and I dropped it.

They may be trying to identify cases like that to figure out numbers they can weed out of their call list.

[gollygee]

28. The device, like an old phone in the attic or garage. Not if we maintain an actual working landline.

It was just about the physical landline phone.