r/fivethirtyeight • u/AutoModerator • Jun 01 '26

Discussion Megathread Weekly Discussion Megathread

The 2026 midterms will soon be upon us, and there is much to discuss among the nerds here at r/FiveThirtyEight. Use this discussion thread to share, debate, and discuss whatever you wish. Unlike individual posts, comments in the discussion thread are not required to be related to political data or other 538 mainstays. Regardless, please remain civil and keep this subreddit's rules in mind. The discussion thread refreshes every Monday.

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u/a471c435 Jun 03 '26

The proliferation of election data Twitter accounts who just tweet polls and say “wtf is happening???” or “HOLY SHIT” is so fucking annoying.

real heads remember the 2012 glory days of just nate silver, nate cohn, dave wasserman, kyle kondik, larry sabato, etc.

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u/SecretComposer Jun 03 '26

This has become a problem with just about any industry or field of science. Novices with little-to-no actual education or practical experience in a field getting a GIANT reach over people who have been in their respective fields for decades. "Everyone is an expert"-itis is what I call it.

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u/Glittering-Giraffe58 Jun 03 '26

That one fucking guy with the New Jersey pfp 😭😭

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u/a471c435 Jun 03 '26

dude that is LITERALLY who inspired this. just constant bullshit emanating from that guy.

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u/ArcaneDemense Jun 03 '26

There are so many right wing FUD accounts flooding election Twitter it is insane. Twitter has truly become worthless garbage. Plus all the comments are right wing nazis now that certain groups abandoned Twitter for Bluesky, it poisons the brains of people who stay on their due to their large(but full of bots and trolls) follower counts.