Economy

In 2005, I sensed that journalists in general prefer to call this time of the year in commerce that of "holiday shopping" instead of "Christmas shopping," but that when it came to people losing their jobs, they preferred to describe layoffs as relating to "Christmas." My instincts have been proven correct for two years running, as you can see below from the results of three different sets of…

Steve Fraser might look mild-mannered, but when it comes to economic doomsaying, he is the Rocky Marciano of recession, the Tiger Woods of turndown, the David Beckham of depression.Speaking of bending one, Fraser's LA Times column of today, "Symptoms of an Economic Depression," twists U.S. economic data into a harbinger of impending doom. Fraser begins by falsely claiming that "no one wants to…

Is the New York Times changing? In an article about Old Havana's rebuilding, NYT reporter John C. McKinley, Jr. bucked the media habit of inserting leftist messages into articles about Cuba. Instead, he exposed the average Cuban's poverty, giving the state-run socialist economy as the cause--all without mentioning “free” health care or the US embargo.The NYT's December 6 article even described…

Here's a substantive critique of Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.), from the international stage no less, that I've seen unreported in American media thus far.The Democratic presidential candidate is under fire from a European trade official who suggests that her hinted support for more trade protectionism would prove harmful to the global economy. The December 6 Financial Times reported the comments…

In "Wall St. Sees Silver Lining," new New York Times economics reporter Peter Goodman (formerly of the Washington Post) made Saturday's front page with a "news analysis" that impressively managed to put last week's big stock market rally in the context of an "ailing economy" that was "imperiled by the crumbling housing market."

Remember when everyone was warning of impending economic collapse from oil reaching that mystical mark of $100 a barrel? Over the past two months, it has been on the way according to the media. But as of December 3, the price of crude has decreased - not increased as predicted."Crude briefly cracked $90 a barrel for the first time and analysts say that will soon trickle down to the pump," Alexis…

The Associated Press, Los Angeles Times, and Washington Post are all referring to a package of recently-defeated Venezuelan constitutional amendments as "reforms." In reality, those so-called reforms were all bent on amassing more power and influence in the hands of Hugo Chavez. Washington Post's Juan Forero gave readers early of the December 3 Home Edition article (published before the outcome…

Oh, how Old Media wants a recession. Too bad the economy isn't cooperating.The latest Institute for Supply Management (ISM) report on the Manufacturing Sector, covering about 15% of the non-government economy, was just released this morning, and led as follows:Economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded in November for the 10th consecutive month, while the overall economy grew for the…