He was fascinated by the process. Here was a tool he
could use, a process that could reduce the mysterious ways
of politics to scientific testing and evaluation.Morris would go on to become a key advisor to Clinton
when Clinton became President, and many people came to view
his obsession with polling as deeply problematic — as a
corruption of the obligation of elected officials to provide
leadership and act upon principle. In truth, that’s a little harsh.
Morris was simply bringing to the world of politics the very
same notions that guide the business world. Everyone wants to
capture the mysterious and powerful reactions we have to the
world around us. The people who make movies or detergent or
cars or music all want to know what we think of their products.
That’s why it wasn’t enough for the people in the music
business who loved Kenna to act on their gut feelings. Gut
feelings about what the public wants are too mysterious and too
iffy. Kenna was sent to the market researchers because it seems
as though the most accurate way to find out how consumers
feel about something is to ask them directly.
But is that really true? If we had asked the students in John
Bargh’s experiment why they were standing in the hall so