“Cox ‘push polling,’ residents say”

Few in Lafayette will be surprised to hear that Cox has been accused of push polling in Arizona after our experience here.

Apparently the push polls there are designed to produce results that would be helpful to Cox’s lobbying projects in the Arizona legislature. The (false) contrast the Cox poll promotes is between having more HD and on-demand channels by offering fewer public access channels. That’s not a necessary choice at all and it’s not being suggested elsewhere. Cox is suggesting that is the choice anyway–without mentioning the premium price of the one and the free quality of the public access channels. Cox will make a ton more money off the specialty services than in filling its contractual obligation to provide local access TV as a service to the community. But put that way its sounds greedy. So they try and get the public to say it for them by asking misleading questions.

The push poll also throws in a little gist for lobbying effort to reduce the maximum amount that cable companies can be charged for using the public rights of way.

Cox. Your friend in the digital age, right? Now you know why that animated cartoon character is draw to look so silly–he’s gotta be a credible spokesperson for absurd ideas.