Should Election Results be published before the election is over?

"In the 2000 election, all major television networks gave Florida to the Democtratic candidate Al Gore early in the evening, only to widthdraw their prediction later. Then, several major networks predicted Republican candidate George W. Bush the Florida winner in the middle of the night. The Vice President conceded the election because Florida gave Bush a majority of the electoral votes. Again, the networks admitted they were premature, so Gore withdrew his concession. During all the television hoopla of the 2000 election, the Internet pollsters were using exit interviews to predict races and post results online before the polls closed.

Critic contend that these computer predictions may not be accurate and can keep pepole who have not voted away from the polls. Voters confess, "Why vote when the winner is already known?" The new media contend that it's the public's right to know.

Items to consider:

"Should the media be allowed to report predicted election results on the day of the election before all polls across the various time zones are closed?

Would you go to the polls and vote if you know that your candidate was already picked to win or lose?

Some major TV networks have agreed to wait until the polls close before predicting the winner for the state, but internet media do not have any such agreement - should they?"

* credited to Larry and Nancy Long, Computers: Information Technology in Perspective, 11ed: Prentice Hall: NJ.