Why the stock market gets negative news coverage

Markets reporter Sam Ro writes about why the stock market coverage is often negative.

Ro writes, “If you’re in financial news, and you have to report on the markets every day, then about 47% of your days come with the stock market trading lower that day.

“Unfortunately, most people won’t accept that prices are down that day ‘just because.’

“That brings us to markets reporters and editors — one of which I have been in a variety of capacities over the last 18 years — who are in a very tough spot. All of their reporting and researching may have them conclude that the balance of news and risks is positive. But if prices are down, many are still under pressure to spin up or back into some narrative.

“This leads to weird headlines like ‘Stocks fall as traders take profits’ or ‘Stocks close lower as optimism fades’ or ‘Stocks pull back on heightened uncertainty.’

“Meanwhile, there’s never a shortage of bearish pundits happy to offer quotes with their thoughts on why prices are down on a given day. And their bearish assessments seem much more compelling when the live charts we’re all looking at are red. Sometimes, they’re right. Most of the time, they’re just amplifying the noise.”

Read more here.