Christian Science Monitor Quotes Gallup Poll

Do most gun owners still believe that President Obama is going to take their guns away? That’s what The Christian Science Monitor is reporting this week, citing new findings from a Gallup poll. However, the wording is certainly biased. Note the headline:

“Most gun owners think Obama wants to take away their weapons”

Yet, then the article goes on to mention exactly how many is “most,” and it is surprising:

“Gallup found that 55 percent of those who personally own a gun, 53 percent of those with a gun in their household, and 41 percent of all Americans believe Barack Obama ‘will attempt to ban the sale of guns in the United States while he is president.’”

Whether this is an issue or not, it is an interesting choice that “most” gun owners believe this. Since when is 55 percent most? That’s a majority yes, but is it even close to most. Factor in this disclaimer at the end of the story:

“The Gallup survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.”

Oh, so if we figure that the survey was off by four points, than it could be just 51 percent of those who personally own a gun in other words, just over half, again a far cry from “most.” This is another example of the media trying to put a spin on how gun owners really feel. Also compare this to how the same information was posted by Gallup, and you can see how the media swings things to make it seem more sensational. Here is Gallup’s headline for the same findings:

“Many Gun Owners Think Obama Will Try to Ban Gun Sales”

There is a big difference between many and most isn’t there.