Reader’s Digest Poll Finds New Yorkers the Politest in the World
Although the Big Apple has a reputation for being tough and gritty, the results of a Reader’s Digest poll show that citizens of New York City are the politest people in the world.
By Linda Orlando
When most people think of New York City, they think of honking cabs, shouting vendors, wailing sirens, and throngs of people shoving each other in and out of subways at a hectic pace. Those images of New York may be seen in movies and on television, but the truth is a far different story. Thanks in great part to the diligence of Mayor Rudy Giuliani and the tremendous outpouring of brotherly love in the wake of the 9/11 tragedy, the Big Apple has been born again into one of the most pleasant places on Earth. And now there’s proof.
Reader’s Digest will publish in its July issue the results of a non-scientific poll their staff conducted, and those results may surprise you. "Undercover reporters" were sent to 36 major cities in countries around the world to measure courtesy. Each reporter did three things to assess the results: they walked into buildings behind people to see if the person ahead of them would hold the door open for them; they went to busy locations and dropped folders full of papers to see if anyone would offer to help pick them up; and they recorded whether sales assistants said "thank you" when they bought a small item in a store.
More than 2,000 people were scrutinized for the tests, and points were awarded for the various responses. After comparing the results, the staff declared New Yorkers to be the politest people in the world. Four out of five New Yorkers passed the courtesy test: 90% held the door open, 95% of store clerks said "thank you," and 37% of women and 64% of men offered assistance with the dropped papers.
Other cities where the poll was conducted included London, Toronto, and Moscow. The city that ranked the lowest in the results was Mumbai, India. In general, Asia was home to the rudest people, where 8 of the 9 cities tested ranked in the bottom 11 cities in the poll. In Europe, Bucharest and Moscow were found to be the least polite.
Reader’s Digest, which is published in 21 languages, is one of the most widely read magazines in the world, reaching 80 million readers. Maybe some of those readers should take notice of where their city ranked and work toward ranking higher in the next poll.
When most people think of New York City, they think of honking cabs, shouting vendors, wailing sirens, and throngs of people shoving each other in and out of subways at a hectic pace. Those images of New York may be seen in movies and on television, but the truth is a far different story. Thanks in great part to the diligence of Mayor Rudy Giuliani and the tremendous outpouring of brotherly love in the wake of the 9/11 tragedy, the Big Apple has been born again into one of the most pleasant places on Earth. And now there’s proof.
Reader’s Digest will publish in its July issue the results of a non-scientific poll their staff conducted, and those results may surprise you. "Undercover reporters" were sent to 36 major cities in countries around the world to measure courtesy. Each reporter did three things to assess the results: they walked into buildings behind people to see if the person ahead of them would hold the door open for them; they went to busy locations and dropped folders full of papers to see if anyone would offer to help pick them up; and they recorded whether sales assistants said "thank you" when they bought a small item in a store.
More than 2,000 people were scrutinized for the tests, and points were awarded for the various responses. After comparing the results, the staff declared New Yorkers to be the politest people in the world. Four out of five New Yorkers passed the courtesy test: 90% held the door open, 95% of store clerks said "thank you," and 37% of women and 64% of men offered assistance with the dropped papers.
Other cities where the poll was conducted included London, Toronto, and Moscow. The city that ranked the lowest in the results was Mumbai, India. In general, Asia was home to the rudest people, where 8 of the 9 cities tested ranked in the bottom 11 cities in the poll. In Europe, Bucharest and Moscow were found to be the least polite.
Reader’s Digest, which is published in 21 languages, is one of the most widely read magazines in the world, reaching 80 million readers. Maybe some of those readers should take notice of where their city ranked and work toward ranking higher in the next poll.
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