It has been said that news is the conversation of democracy. If so, the conversation that the establishment news media ha offered voters ahead of the midterm elections has been unhelpful, to say the least. Citizens will soon head to the ballot box, and in some states many have already voted early. Sadly, voters who rely on the media are underprepared to do their civic duty.

Midterm coverage has been dominated by "horse race" reporting. The media just can't let go of their obsession with polls. Reporters deliver breathless updates on a 1- or 2-point shift in a Senate race or ballot measure, as if such statistical noise actually matters.

It seems every news organization and a sizable batch of universities feel compelled to sponsor polls. More than 20 national polls saturate the news agenda, not to mention countless state and regional surveys. These polls do little to inform or explain, but that isn't really their purpose. Poll sponsorship is mostly a marketing and branding exercise for the outlets paying for them.

Polls give journalists something to talk about without having to dig for real stories. Poll coverage fills airtime and column inches with endless off-the-cuff analysis........

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