False Claims - Coursework Example

New York Times news report on gun ownership among households shows inconsistency in the survey data compared with other investigating firms such as Gallup. New York Times used incomplete, psychological tactics and omitted information in reporting gun ownership among United States citizens. The news center uses obsolete data from a General social survey to claim that the rate of gun ownership has significantly decreased. The report stipulates that there has been an overall drop in the percentage of gun ownership using data that does not match those of crime prevention centers (Johnrlott, 2013). New York Times reports indicate that 34 percent of American households possessed guns in 2012. They claim that compared to 32 percent of gun ownership in 2010, the rate had substantially declined.

The GSS Survey data that New York Times relied on contradicts many other surveys conducted by prominent firms such as Gallup. Gallup reported 47 percent gun ownership in October 2011. The percentages reported by Gallup were inconsistent with the trend of decline in gun ownership as outlined by the New York Times. New York Times data also failed to account for the percentage of gun ownership in 2011(Gebeloff & Tavernise, 2013). The omission of data shows unreliability in New York Times report on gun ownership in America. Data from ABC news and the Washington Post-poll also shows the inconsistency of New York Times data. ABC News reports indicate that gun ownership among American households holds at 43 percent which is higher than the 37 percent reported by the New York Times.