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"Explore Billig and Marinho's highly original study of politicians misusing statistics, misleading the public, and manipulating statisticians. This book also highlights how the British and French statistical agencies aim to combat this increasingly serious problem. Tailored for all audiences, it is a clearly written, insightful, and witty work"--
List of contents
Acknowledgements, List of abbreviations; 1. Introduction; 2. The rise of statistics; 3. Different ways of manipulating; 4. Donald trump: master manipulator; 5. Manipulating statistics and statisticians; 6. Establishing a statistical authority in Britain; 7. Establishing a statistical authority in France; 8. Gérald Darmanin: populism against statistics; 9. Boris Johnson: untruthful words and numbers; 10. How a manipulated covid target was exposed; 11. Final comments; Notes; Index.
About the author
Michael Billig is Emeritus Professor at Loughborough University. He is a Fellow of the British Academy and received the British Psychological Society's 2023 award for Lifetime Achievement.Cristina Marinho is a Lecturer in the Department of Psychology, University of Edinburgh. Together with Michael Billig, she is the author of The Politics and Rhetoric of Commemoration (2017).
Summary
Explore Billig and Marinho's highly original study of politicians misusing statistics, misleading the public and manipulating statisticians. This book also highlights how the British and French statistical agencies aim to combat this increasingly serious problem. Tailored for all audiences, it is a clearly written, insightful, and witty work.
Foreword
Discover how politicians across the world misuse statistics and manipulate statisticians, and what can be done to stop them.
