Plummeting Gas Prices Means Plummeting News Coverage

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It’s like clockwork. Gas prices have fallen, and so has network news coverage of them. This direct correlation between prices and coverage has caused news of gas prices to essentially disappear in the past week.

The latest Lundberg Survey of fuel prices, released on July 12, showed that gas prices have fallen more than 10 cents over the past two weeks. However, in keeping with the warped coverage of gas prices, the largest drop in prices since December went unreported by all major network morning shows except NBC’s “Today Show”, and even this was hidden away in the hourly news reports.

Perhaps Americans have lost interest in gas prices, and therefore networks now fail to find the topic newsworthy. If that’s the case, the public must have changed its mind since mid-June when, with prices on the rise, coverage was extensive.

“CBS Morning News” reported on June 17 that “Widespread unemployment is stopping companies from raising prices for fear of losing cash-strapped customers, but not at the gas station. Gas prices have risen every day for the past month and a half.”

On June 16 ABC’s Bianna Golodryga commented, “We've seen gas prices go up 60 percent since hitting their lows back in December. Oil prices have more than doubled since,” as she led into a story on the effects of gas prices on the economy.

Yet ABC, and all networks, failed to report the effect that a fall in gas prices has on the economy. $1 billion returns to US consumers for every penny gas prices fall. This means that in the past two weeks American consumers received $10 billion back due to the 10 cent-price decrease, one of the few promising statistics in these hard economic times, but one overlooked by the mainstream media.

The “Today Show” was also part of the media hype of rising gas prices. Kevin Tibbles took a bleak look at gas prices on June 15, saying, “just when you thought it was safe to bundle the kids in the car and plan that cheap, economical, recession-proof summer driving holiday, think again.”

Tibbles interviewed average gas buyers, none of whom gave any explanation for the rising prices. Instead, he got predictable claims not backed by facts, such as “They say it’s supply and demand, but it's more like they just want to get more money.”

Like most reporters who make gas price predictions, Tibbles turned out to be a lousy prophet. “So watch out, America,” he said. “Three-dollar gas nationwide may be coming over the horizon.”

With the national average now at $2.55, it would be nice to see him revisit gas prices and amend his prophesy.

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It's worse for the other type of gas.

Somebody also needs to alert the media about the existence of natural gas. Its price has plummeted over the past 12 months, but the only time I ever see it mentioned is when T. Boone Pickens talks about it. This decrease is what's responsible for me paying half as much for electricity as I was a year ago. And we can all thank those evil fossil fuel corporations for this. They just keep managing to find more and more of the stuff and figuring out new ways to extract it.

Of course all that falls into the "good news that doesn't have anything to do with President Obama" category, so I shouldn't be surprised by the lack of coverage.

Weird-I would have thought

Weird-I would have thought the opposite, that is, falling gas prices would be a good reason to say how Dear Leader's economic/stimulus programs are working.  Most people would easily buy that.

But I suppose that the idea of affordable fossil fuel energy trump even short-term Obamagratification?

One of the 34% who thinks George W. Bush was a great President. One of the 61% who wants to bring back the stock and pillory (yep...approval for Congress now at 39%...do you believe that!?).

Crude oil is still higher than when Bush left office.

Crude oil prices (wow look at a year ago!)

Natural gas is cheap now because companies can drill drill drill.... The price has droped due to HUGE supplies now.. The western slope of Colorado was covered with many  drill (gas) rigs, now lots of them are being pulled out.  A bit of an energy bust is now going on out there.

Just think if we drilled for oil!

Oh well  when demand picks up so will the prices... A regulator on the growth of the economy.

Not to worry tho, the prices will be going up, through INCREASED taxes..This tax action will shrink the economy even more!

Reagan VS Liberalism

I'd just like to know

I'd just like to know exactly where gas prices are "plummeting" because they've only gone down about 2 cents a gallon where I live.

I'm no oil company bashing

I'm no oil company bashing populist, but I do notice that retail gas prices seem to rise more quickly than they fall. 

The "Mainstream" Media: By liberals. For liberals.

I think it is more difficult

to reverse the numbers on the sign. Or at least that is what I was told. : ]

 

My Gov. thinks I am dangerous, so be careful

"Television is a freak show" Bernie Goldberg

See what happens when the

See what happens when the government does nothing? Prices go up and down according to the market. No need for government intervention! Shhh, don't tell them they're not doing anything though.

We need to drill here drill now

in order to pay less and osama obama and the dempublicans are not going to do it. Left unchecked obama wants gas at somewhere around 5 to 10 dollars a gallon and unless we stop him and get rid of him it is likely coming to a gas station near you sometime soon.

"No Recovery until Nobama!!!!!" me and at least 59,934,786 other Americans.

RDK... Bulls-Eye. Like

RDK...

Bulls-Eye.

Like I've often said over the years...Drill Often...Drill Everywhere!

The only hope I see of that anytime soon is 2013...and that is iffy, unless we have a national crisis, after-all, a crisis is too good to waste.

Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart

Of course if they raise gas

Of course if they raise gas prices, people will drive less so there will be less impact on the almighty environment, And besides, do people really need to go anywhere...at least without the government's permission?  After all, we really can't do anything without the government's intervention, can we?  Perhaps the government should do like the old USSR and limit our travels from city to city or state to state...you know...just to keep us in line and all that. 

Kat... Talk about the

Kat...

Talk about the unemployment rate going up if the prices do reach sky high...many in this country have to travel distances to get to work, take care of personl business, let alone the store.

People would rise up in my opinion...they never do until it hits them hard at home...the good ol' pocket-book with no greenbacks, credit cards maxed, make people start paying attention once again.

We shall see...that's for sure.

Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart

There's already a lot less of us

driving because not to beat a dead horse, but again thanks to obama we are out of work. It's also the obama goal to have us all in golfcart hybrides to save the world.

"No Recovery until Nobama!!!!!" me and at least 59,934,786 other Americans.

A leading indicator with bad portends

My personal theory is that gas prices are a leading indicator of where the market thinks the economy is going.  If the gas prices are dropping like a rock, look for the sour economy to suddenly become noticeably worse.  Think back to last summer.  BTW, 5% more of the population is no longer driving to work.  That could be contributing to a decrease, but not a sudden decrease.

I further think that this is not being discussed by the Slime Stream Media because it does not look like a good omen for Dear Leader and his management of things economic.

- Relying upon the MSM for your information is like relying upon an embezzler to manage your portfolio.