Categories: OLD Media Moves

A lawsuit waiting to happen

Jim Ledbetter of Fortune writes on its Browser technology blog about CNBC‘s slogan and wonders whether the business news cable network is inviting a lawsuit.

Ledbetter wrote, “Playing off the bad joke that is the Fox News Channel’s ‘fair and balanced’ motto, CNBC has been running ads touting its coverage as ‘unbiased.’ Leaving aside whether you find that claim plausible – or even interesting – the actual full slogan is that CNBC provides ‘fast, accurate, actionable and unbiased business news’.

“Perhaps we are on the crest of a new semantic wave, but does CNBC – a division of General Electric – really want to refer to its coverage as ‘actionable’? Every dictionary I have consulted uses as the primary definition for ‘actionable’ some variation of ‘providing grounds for a lawsuit.’ In fact, I can find only one dictionary that even includes a definition akin to the one I assume CNBC intends, i.e., leading to an action, or capable of being acted upon.

“I suppose this is nitpicking, but as an editor it is my job to spot and (I hope!) weed out unintended ambiguities. And I’m hardly alone in insisting that, really, the legal meaning is the only meaning of the word actionable, and all other uses are unfortunate corporate malapropisms.”

Read more here.

Chris Roush

Chris Roush was the dean of the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut. He was previously Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished Professor in business journalism at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is a former business journalist for Bloomberg News, Businessweek, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Tampa Tribune and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. He is the author of the leading business reporting textbook "Show me the Money: Writing Business and Economics Stories for Mass Communication" and "Thinking Things Over," a biography of former Wall Street Journal editor Vermont Royster.

View Comments

  • I could debate Jim over "Mad Money" and "The Big Idea" being "actionable" shows because one could easily take the advice or guidance given and do something almost immediately.

  • I am not sure running ads can devalue the news products. They can live side by side without harming each other. But yes there is a possibility of influence.

Recent Posts

NY Times taps Searcey to cover wealth and power

New York Times metro editor Nestor Ramos sent out the following on Friday: We are delighted to…

1 hour ago

The evolution of the WSJ beyond finance

Rahat Kapur of Campaign looks at the evolution The Wall Street Journal. Kapur writes, "The transformation…

16 hours ago

Silicon Valley Biz Journal seeks a reporter

This position will be Hybrid in the office/market 3 days per week, and those days…

16 hours ago

Economist’s Bennet, WSJ’s Morrow receive awards

The Fund for American Studies presented James Bennet of The Economist with the Kenneth Y. Tomlinson Award…

23 hours ago

WSJ is testing AI-generated article summaries

The Wall Street Journal is experimenting with AI-generated article summaries that appear at the top…

1 day ago

Cohen joining Bloomberg Tax

Zach Cohen is joining Bloomberg Tax to cover the fiscal cliff and tax issues on…

1 day ago