The Complete Guide to Article Writing by Naveed Saleh

Author:Naveed Saleh [Saleh, Naveed]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-5996-3752-5
Publisher: F+W Media
Published: 2013-03-11T04:00:00+00:00

Sampling Bias

In science, sampling bias occurs when a researcher fails to select a random sample representative of an entire population. For example, if a researcher were trying to estimate the average height of the American man by sampling NBA players, the results would be way off—NBA players are really tall! When reviewing a product or service, smart reviewers will do their best to obtain a random sampling.

“In most cases, instead of reviewing a meal or a bottle of wine, I would rather [review] the general output of a restaurant or winery over time,” says Morris. “That’s how I approach it, and many food critics do the same thing … [and] go back several times to a restaurant. … You have a certain responsibility to the reader. If they like you, they’re going to go along with your recommendation or at least take it into account.”

It’s particularly important to consider sampling bias when reviewing products or services that change over time, such as food and wine. Finished products such as books and movies don’t—for the most part—change over time. “When I wrote about films,” says Morris, “I was much younger and probably less thoughtful. If I were writing film reviews now—or a book review even—I would be less kind, less friendly, because it’s out there. It’s for everybody to see. It’s not going to change. … There’s not going to be such a thing as ‘You hit us on a bad evening,’ or, ‘That was a bad vintage.’ It’s out there. … It’s a finished work. … It’s open to everybody. If I was doing film criticism now, I would be much tougher than I would be for wine and food writing.”

But even when reviewing movies, the notion of sampling bias may be relevant—especially for first-time directors. “I may be tempted to give a first-time filmmaker more of a pass than I would be tempted to give a pass to an off work from somebody who I know is capable of better,” says Leydon.

Unfortunately, some writers who review the arts are unnecessarily mean. (If interested in learning more about how negative some critics are, I suggest the documentary Heckler starring Jamie Kennedy.) When reviewing the arts, keep in mind that those involved in the film, play, or concert probably tried to do their best. There’s no reason to be ruthlessly disparaging. For example, I once was invited to review a film by Sony Pictures, and I ended up writing a review where I criticized an actress’s smile (she had several snaggleteeth). In retrospect, I thought I was being funny, but I just ended up being mean. The review was okay and some people liked it, but to this day, I feel bad for unnecessarily commenting on the actress’s teeth.

When reviewing the arts, there are at least three good reasons to refrain from being unduly critical. The first reason has to do with preserving the livelihood of others. A bad review could not only hurt the restaurant, winery, and so forth but

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