Record Dow a Downer on the Networks

A new stock market high is good news, right?

“In stock market terms alone, this is now the longest consecutive uninterrupted stock market rally,” said Lawrence Kudlow on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” on July 13.

“It started in early 2003, so that’s four and a half years. And it’s incredible how much wealth is being created out there and it’s unfortunate, really – almost tragic – that the president just doesn’t get any credit for it at all because he’s got a lot to say on the economy.”

While Kudlow found the record worth cheering, the three major networks supplied "some worries" and "some dark clouds" to viewers on July 12. Each one offered its own spin of gloomy news following the record high closings of the Dow and S&P 500.

"There are still some dark clouds looming over this market," said correspondent Dan Harris on ABC’s "World News with Charles Gibson." "The housing market is in a slump, interest rates are rising and gas prices are ticking back up."

But of course, CBS had its own take on the news and could not be outdone.

"There are still some worries out there," said CBS correspondent Anthony Mason on "Evening News." "The housing market is still slumping. We’ve had close to a million foreclosures since January."

And not wanting to be left out was NBC "Nightly News."

“[W]e’ve heard this good news on Wall Street,” said “Nightly News” anchor Brian Williams. “It is despite the fact that a lot of homeowners in this country are under tremendous stress right now. According to RealityTrac (sic) [RealtyTrac], that’s a company that sells mortgage data, foreclosures across the country are up a staggering 87 percent over this very same time last year.”

All this bad news accompanied the stock market's largest gain in nearly four years.

Downplaying good economic news, especially the stock market is nothing new to the network news. Reporters have a history of pressing other economic factors like gas prices and housing, then threaten these pressures would sink the economy.

Fox News Channel host Neil Cavuto devoted a portion of his July 13 program to viewers complaining about media outlets that had ignored or downplayed the historic stock market high. NB's Ken Shepherd has video here.