CBS Statics: misleading, incomplete, amateurish and biased

CBS sponsored a meme which identified the top 20 states which registerd instances of death by firearms.

They were somewhat disingenuous in the criteria they chose.

They chose ALASKA as the most suffering from "death by gun".

They mentioned that suicide was the "leading cause of gun deaths.  They emphasized that ",,, states with the highest rates of suicide also usually had the strongest culture of gun ownership.".

They didn't mention that states with the highest rate of suicide were also the states with very low population.

Some people might consider that "loneliness" might be a huge factor in suicide rates, but this study doesn't address it at all.

1. Alaska - Death by gun: Top 20 states with highest rates - Pictures - CBS News: 

Death by firearm per 100,000 population: 19.8 No permit required for purchase of a firearm. In Alaska, suicide was the leading cause of gun deaths, with it being the main factor in more than 80% of all firearm deaths. John Roman, senior fellow at the Urban Institute, an economic and social policy think tank told USA Today that states with the highest rates of suicide also usually had the strongest culture of gun ownership. "There are many more suicides in places where it's easy to get a gun," he said.

In fact, this poorly edited website only mentions states which do NOT require a "permit for purchase of a firearm" ... and no other background information was made available.   Efforts to follow up on subsequent 'ratings' were unrewarding.

For example:

5. Arkansas

Death by firearm per 100,000 population: 16.8

No permit required for purchase of a firearm.

As far as I was willing to follow the trail, these were the limited statistics available,  and there absolutely NO details available to differentiate between the states.

No permit required for purchase of a firearm

The insinuation is clear, that the authors consider a 'permit process' to be a valid method to reduce firearm deaths, although no details described the variety of ways which firearm deaths might occur (death by Law Enforcement Officers, Self Defense, Manslaughter, Murder, etc.)

The only significant statistics (according to this website) are whether firearms owners who were (even tangentially) involved in a "firearms death" were required to apply for, and receive, a 'permit' from their state of residence before they were 'allowed' to purchase a firearm.

The problem with the Internet is that anyone can make any statement, and as long as they are able to cite another internet post as "authority", they may be accepted as "fact" by someone who has an axe to grind, and cannot find another source to justify their assertionsl.