determine whether the sampling method described below appears to be sound or is flawed. in a survey of ​subjects, each was asked how often he or she the survey subjects were internet users who responded to a question that was posted on a news website.

The sampling method described—surveying internet users who voluntarily responded to a question posted on a news website—is flawed. This is because it constitutes a voluntary response sample , which is a non-probability sampling method prone to bias. Only individuals who choose to respond are included, which often leads to overrepresentation of people with strong opinions or specific characteristics, and underrepresentation of the broader population. As a result, the sample is unlikely to be representative of the entire target population, limiting the validity and generalizability of the survey findings

. In summary:

• The sample is self-selected, not randomly chosen.
• It excludes non-internet users and those who did not see or choose to respond to the question.
• This introduces sampling bias and threatens the reliability of conclusions drawn from the data.

Therefore, this sampling method is considered unsound for making valid inferences about the general population