Frankie Flack: I’ll wait for stock market frenzy to subside

This won’t shock you guys, but I have no idea where the stock market is going to go. And I know that you guys don’t know, either. In fact, one of the nice things about a long career on the edge of the business world is that I’m confident that no one has any idea what’s going on. I’m sure the computers are running things, and they ain’t talking. The stock market is pretty much run by Skynet these days.

Now, much like Kardashian news, reporters still have to cover the stock market because people want to read about it. And that’s where things get dicey for me. Most of my clients are not in the business of predicting the stock market, and that’s all anyone is asking for this week.

(This feels like a good time to re-raise my issues with pack journalism. If you don’t have anything new to say, don’t say it. The eyeballs aren’t worth it.)

There is essentially no benefit to my clients talking about anything this week. Legitimate news is getting swamped by market news, and every single journalist is going to ask every single executive for some market commentary.

And most execs are going to say something that is either dismally wrong in the long term or blindingly obvious. We can’t win.

Now, my phone is on, and I have a whole list of folks who would love to talk about the fundamental of their business. But those are not the requests that are rolling in.

And that’s why I’ve been taking it easy this week, chatting up reporters when they call but not otherwise pitching much. I don’t want my guys to be inserted into a story that no one really understands. The stock market gyration narrative is essentially a tornado: no one knows where it’ll go next, but it’s pretty much going to be destructive.

I’m sure there are some flacks who love chasing the twister and getting their guys quoted on What It All Means.

Me (if we’re stretching the metaphor)? I’m in my basement, drinking Scotch, waiting for the storm to pass.