I explained that I got this idea from the polling my
friend Dick Dresner had done for the movie industry.
Before a new James Bond movie or a sequel to a film like
Jaws came out, a film company would hire Dresner to
summarize the plot and then ask people whether they
wanted to see the movie. Dresner would read respondents
proposed PR blurbs and slogans about the movie to find out
which ones worked the best. Sometimes he even read them
different endings or described different places where the
same scenes were shot to see which they preferred.
“And you just apply these techniques to politics?”
Clinton asked.
I explained how it could be done. “Why not do the same
thing with political ads? Or speeches? Or arguments about
the issues? And after each statement, ask them again whom
they’re going to vote for. Then you can see which
arguments move how many voters and which voters they
move.”
We talked for almost four hours and ate lunch at his
desk. I showed the attorney general sample polls I’d done.