The role of financial journalism in financial literacy

Aaron London of the Daytona Beach News Journal writes Sunday about the impact of stories about business and the economy in the media have on financial literacy in the country.

London writes, “Financial journalism, like all journalism, is a fast-paced business where information flies around at a thousand miles per hour. And with so many media outlets competing for the attention of readers and listeners, it’s not a surprise that sometimes editors can oversell a story, just a bit anyway.

“But that’s still not the real issue. At the time a particular story is printed or posted on the Web, it is generally the product of the best information available at that time. The problem is, 10 minutes after the presses start to run or after a reader points and clicks his way to another site, the story may change, or at least more information may come available.

“In this information glut, there is often little time for readers to sift through the various sources and put all of the pertinent information into a coherent whole. That is the job of the journalist and his or her editor, and for the most part it is done very well, day in and day out.

“But consumers don’t just want to know what’s going on today. They want to know what is going to happen tomorrow and next week and next month and a year from now. And even though objective journalists cannot provide such a glimpse into the future, there are plenty of other talking heads and rambling fingers out there who are more than happy to speculate on the economic future. As commentaries and acknowledged prognostications, there is definitely a place for these economic forecasters.”

Read more here.