"If you had been keeping tabs on the news about church attendance in Britain lately, you would be forgiven for thinking the country was in the midst of a Christian revival.
Stories of swelling congregations, filled with young people returning to the flock, spurred on by everything from social media to a rise in bible sales appeared to be confirmed by a 2024 report from the Bible Society."
~ Sinéad Campbell
#UK #religion #ReligiousRevival #YouGov #AI #BibleSociety
/1
"Based on data collected by a YouGov survey, it claimed church attendance was increasing in England and Wales. The findings drove headlines, and the narrative was established.
There was just one problem – the survey turned out to be based on 'fraudulent' data and has been withdrawn."
#UK #religion #ReligiousRevival #YouGov #AI #BibleSociety
/2
"And academics and experts are warning that this episode should serve as a parable, not about a renaissance in religion, but of the false prophets of artificial intelligence.
Researchers have said online opt-in surveys are becoming increasingly infested with bogus data as respondents who are often paid for their participation use AI to fill in questionnaires at speed."
#UK #religion #ReligiousRevival #YouGov #AI #BibleSociety
/3
"A YouGov survey showing a significant rise in church attendance in parts of the UK has been withdrawn after some respondents were found to be fraudulent.
The poll was central to a Quiet Revival report, published by the Bible Society last year, which prompted news stories about an apparent resurgence in Christianity, particularly among young people."
~ Nadeem Badshah and Sinéad Campbell
#UK #religion #ReligiousRevival #YouGov #AI #BibleSociety
/4
"But YouGov, which carried out the research in 2024, said on Thursday that the data sample was flawed, with 'a number of respondents who we can now identify as fraudulent.'"
#UK #religion #ReligiousRevival #YouGov #AI #BibleSociety
/5
William Lindsey 
