WSJ missed Social Security story
Hal Morris, writing on his Grumpy Editor blog, wants to know how The Wall Street Journal missed the story earlier this week about the Social Security cost of living adjustment, which affects 50 million people. Morris wrote, “The absent piece, which made its way to front pages of other publications around the country, was word […]
Why is Ben Stein writing about the economy in the NYT biz section?
Felix Salmon of Conde Nast Portfolio wants to know why economist/actor Ben Stein is writing a column in the Sunday New York Times that is full of errors. Salmon noted that Stein got facts about former Wall Street analyst Henry Blodget wrong in his column on Sunday, and that he misquoted himself. Salmon wrote, “Stein, […]
Downplaying layoff news
Hal Morris, writing on his Grumpy Editor blog, comments that The Wall Street Journal downplayed 4,000 layoffs at Bank of America that received much bigger coverage at other papers. Morris wrote, “But the revelation received only one large paragraph (under In Brief) in yesterday’s WSJ. “That compares with more detailed stories in the affected areas […]
NBC News negative about rate cut
Noel Sheppard of NewsBusters writes Wednesday that NBC News reported a negative angle about Tuesday’s Federal Reserve rate cut when the story should have been a positive. Sheppard wrote, “In case you were out of the country and missed it, the Federal Reserve on Tuesday surprisingly cut two key interest rates by a half percentage […]
Biz media blames credit agencies for mortgage meltdown
TheDeal.com executive editor Yvette Kantrow writes Monday that the business media is falsely blaming credit rating agencies — which have been blamed for all of the financial problems of the past 20 years — for the woes in the mortgage industry. Kantrow wrote, “Even the luxury-addled minds over at Condé Nast’s Portfolio cottoned onto this […]
Biz journalists missed subprime story
Martin Lobel, a Washington attorney and chairman of the board of Tax Analysts, a source for journalists, write on the Nieman Watchdog site Thursday that business journalists missed the story of the unraveling of the subprime market that could easily have been told. Lobel wrote, “If reporters and editors had more of a sense of […]
Biz media has been focusing on the negative
John Heinzl of the Toronto Globe and Mail writes Thursday that a recent study of how the media has covered business issues this summer shows that they are focusing on the negative. Heinzl wrote, “To find out, U.S. research firm Birinyi Associates examined how The New York Times covered the wild swings on the stock […]
Lower interest rates not good for everyone
Hal Morris, who writes on the grumpyeditor.com blog, notes that the coverage of lower interest rates ignores the fact that lower rates are bad for some people. Morris wrote, “But for others, especially budget-pinched families and retirees depending on supplemental monthly income, ‘lower interest rates’ also means less yields on savings instruments, including certificates of […]
Why economic pundits in stories are so negative
James Surowiecki of The New Yorker writes that the gurus and insiders frequently being quoted in the business press these days are biased with a gloomy outlook, but the media doesn’t realize the reason why. Surowiecki wrote, “The same issues are at work with the money managers and Wall Street analysts you see quoted in […]
CNBC reporter reacts negatively to housing proposal
Jeff Poor of the Business & Media Institute writes Saturday that a CNBC business journalist reacted negatively to President Bush’s proposal to aid homeowners who took out risky subprime mortgages, reporting that it’s not enough. Poor wrote, ” ‘[I] don’t know how big of a helping hand it was when you’re talking about two million […]
