Cramer’s difficulties in a turbulent market

David Carr of the New York Times writes for Monday’s paper about CNBC “Mad Money” host Jim Cramer, who has encountered criticism during the economic turmoil but remains committed to his show.

Carr writes, “As the markets performed another U-turn on Friday, the script for ‘Mad Money’ became a criss-cross of revisions. By the time he got to the end, the voluble Mr. Cramer was at a loss for words. He held off the crew and said, ‘I have to think about what I am going to say about all this.’

“So what is the polite thing to say? The jig is up? Go to the mattresses? Run for your life? He wrapped up the show by talking about prosaic yields, not robust earnings.

“‘I think it’s O.K. to say that was a relatively dull show. It’s not a message of hope, it’s a message of defense,’ he said afterward. And then he reached for a metaphor that’s going to come in handy.

“‘It’s just a bear trying to do a show in this environment,’ he said.”

Read more here.