Don’t you love when a news story could possibly be part of a larger phenomenon you’ve never heard of? We do!

Some are wondering if Barack Obama’s loss last night was due to the Bradley Effect.

Haven’t heard of it? Then you haven't been watching enough cable news!

Not to make you feel stupid, but the phenomenon is the propensity for white people to pretend (while responding to exit polls or otherwise) to be voting for a black candidate during polling because they don’t want to seem racist. And when it’s just them and the curtain, they’re all, "Psych! I really am racist because there’s nothing more racist that supporting a non-black candidate for separate and unique political reasons."

But we exaggerate. And conflate. A lot of stuff went down in New Hampshire this weekend.

Hillary almost cried. It was nice out. Everyone turned out.

Also, polling, like psychoanalysis, is an inexact science. It's probably not even a science at all; you can't exactly get a doctorate in it. And that’s not just us talking, though we love the sound of our own voice.

Gary Langer, Director of Polling at ABC News, isn't sure what happened either: "In the end there may be no smoking gun," he says. "Those polls may have been accurate, but done in by a superior get-out-the-vote effort, or by very late deciders whose motivations may or may not ever be known."

Bradley effect or not, we’ll find out who the Democrats really want to be running for President in the coming weeks. But one thing's for sure: It's not that crazy Gravel guy!

[Photo Credit: Stephen Voss via Flickr]