Lies, Damn Lies and Statistics


Every day we’re bombarded with statistics from organisations wanting to make their point. But a good journalist will be sceptical about the figures handed out. As Benjamin Disraeli said: “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics.”
Statistics can be used for or against any argument. For example “Our customer satisfaction survey shows 90 per cent approval ratings.” So you’re saying one in ten of your customers think your service/product is rubbish?
Of course you may think this is journalists causing trouble. Well that goes with the territory. But is the question a fair one? I would say yes it is. If you are going to start making claims based on numbers then make sure those figures are watertight and actually mean something. Work out the answer to the one in ten before you do the media interview. The question might not come but have an answer none the less.
The other thing to remember about statistics is avoid getting hung up on them. For scientific/academic/technical reports it matters whether the figure is 71 per cent or around 70 per cent. But when it comes to writing a press release or sending out anything to the media please don’t get too attached to that figure. We will round it up anyway and then put the detail later on in the report.
I would go even further and say don’t just round up the figures but read them out loud and see if they sound right. Would you really say 75 per cent or would you say three-quarters? Is 46 per cent around a half? Yes I would say it is.

I realise this heresy means I won’t be invited to the statistician’s Christmas party but as one in three of the turkey dinners is likely to be overcooked, I probably won’t know more than a quarter of the attendees and there is half the chance I will have to work the following day - I can live without it.

Gail Downey,
Whirlwind Communications
www.whirlwindcommunications.co.uk



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