Lehman CEO: I blame the media

Richard Fuld, the CEO of Lehman Brothers, the Wall Street investment bank that filed for bankruptcy court protection, blamed the business media for part of the company’s problems during Congressional testimony on Monday.

New York Times reporters Ben White and Sharon Otterman wrote, “Perhaps with an eye on questions about his public statements, Mr. Fuld stated in prepared testimony that he said ‘what I absolutely believed to be true’ when he remarked in 2007 that the worst of the credit crisis was behind Lehman.

“He attributed some blame to the media in his testimony, saying some coverage ‘has been sensationalized — based on rumors, speculation, misunderstandings and factual errors.’

“Mr. Fuld also noted that the same day Lehman filed for bankruptcy protection, the Federal Reserve eased lending requirements for other investment banks, something executives at Lehman say they believe could have saved the bank had it been done earlier.”

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