This second question is a whammy - the type professional pollsters drop into surveys when they suspect that people might not tell them the truth.

While the professional pollster's "accurate sampling" is not the goal here, Mr. Celender's mailing list could use some cross-generational freshening.

Some professional pollsters disagree sharply.

It was conducted, in part, by the newspaper's marketing staff, and the questions were drafted not by a professional pollster, but by an editor.

The college polls put competitive pressure on professional pollsters, spurring them to increased accuracy, Mr. Plaut said.

Your reporter told me she defined "professional pollster" as a full-time pollster.

A professional pollster would offer questions with more balanced wording.

But some professional pollsters were doubtful.

It hired R/S/M, professional pollsters, who called a random selection of 1,258 licensed drivers from Philadelphia to Richmond.

So far the informal picture poll conducted by the concern, Progressive Marketing Inc., has closely mirrored the results of professional pollsters, the company says.