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Research body to investigate behavior of McCrindle Research after Media Watch expose

mark mccrindleThe Australian Market & Social Research Society has launched an investigation into the behaviour of one of its members after concerns were raised on Monday’s Media Watch program.

The ABC1 program dedicated much of the show to looking at the activities of Mark McCrindle and his company McCrindle Research.

Surveys press released by McCrindle Research has been featured in hundreds of Australian media stories. One carried out on behalf of Readers Digest which named Colgate as Australia’s most trusted brand was treated with scepticism by Mumbrella readers when it was published last year.

Media Watch offered evidence that on many occasions McCrindle Research had press released surveys with much smaller response bases than it claimed.  

Last week, McCrindle uploaded a video to YouTube talking about his methodology. Media Watch said that prior to broadcast McCrindle had issued “denials and legal threats but very few explanations”.

After the allegations were broadcast, McCrindle issued an apology to clients which was obtained by Media Watch saying: “In the early years of McCrindle Research, when releasing internal, unpaid research, the methodology line referring to the number of people surveyed would sometimes record the number of people sent the survey rather than the number of surveys completed. Almost two years ago this was recognised by us to be inadequate and erroneous and since then we have only made reference to the number of completed surveys received.”

Mark McCrindle currently appears on the AMSRS members list.

AMSRS executive director Elissa Molloy told Mumbrella: “We are currently undertaking an investigation. However any member is entitled to a presumption of innocence during that process.”

She said that the investigation was examining whether the AMSRA code of professional behaviour has been breached. She said: “If that is determined it can include suspension or explusion.”

She said the sanction had been exercised before  but “not for a long time”.

At the time of posting McCrindle Research had not responded to Mumbrella’s inquiry.

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