Gilani Poll conducted by Gallup Pakistan would like to make a correction in the findings released in November 13-2009. The error caused by a mix up of figures in the report is greatly regretted and the team has offered a serious apology. The poll whose findings were reported asked a national sample: “Do you agree or disagree with the statement, ‘Media is responsible for political instability in the country’?” 31% agreed, while 57% disagreed and 12% did not give a view.

Unfortunately the figures were mixed up showing 57% considering media responsible for political instability. The error surfaced in an internal process of verification and the institution considers its responsibility to correct the error. The chairman and the research team have expressed serious regrets for this very unusual mistake. The team has immediately adopted additional measures of verification at the reporting stage to prevent the occurrence of such error in the future. The error is greatly regretted and the correct figures are reported as below.

A recent Gilani poll conducted by Gallup Pakistan shows that despite being enthusiastic audience of media, nearly one third of all Pakistanis (31%) blame media for political instability in the country, however 57% disagree while 12% of the respondents were unsure.

Important Note for the Reader: These views emerged in response to a national opinion poll on the topics of a recent debate aired on a prominent television channel (Pakistan Debates appearing on Geo and also on Aag and organized by PILDAT (www.pildat.org). One of the topics of the debate was “Is media responsible for political instability in the country”. The debating teams comprised a combination of youth and prominent media/public personalities.

The recent Gilani poll was conducted in Pakistan by Gallup Pakistan, affiliated with Gallup International Association, among a sample of 2765 men and women from rural and urban areas of all four provinces of the country, during October 2009.