Media Frenzy on the Economy

There is a media frenzy over the financial crisis that America is facing and it's almost tantamount to Chicken Little screaming that the sky is falling but people are actually listening to the main stream media. You can not turn on a news magazine talk show and not here opinions from the host that are just that… OPINION! These people that sit in the chairs that stare into a camera or talk into a microphone and just babble on based on what they think are by no means financial experts. And yet, America is listening and the belts of the folks still with good jobs at great wages are listening as if these news reporters or “entertainment news anchors” are their Sunday morning preacher declaring the Rapture just after this paid advertisement. And those belts all across America are tightening by people tuning in day after day on the financial crisis news. It becomes a self induced prophecy of our economy. All of the networks are bashing people over the current economic crisis and not a one is innocent…

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For the record I don’t believe political polls but I believe in people that will speak honestly when it comes to their feeling about the current economic situation here in the states. People talk money and vote money when you come right down to it. In elections, they look at the money proposed on campaign promises as somebody else that is spending the money that really is not their money, but in the general economy polls, it is their money and their jobs. Wallets and personal checking accounts come into play.

Over at Breitbart.Com they have this to say about the media frenzy and its influence on the overall economy…

Poll: 77% of Americans Blame Media for Making Economic Crisis Worse

Jan 1 11:09 AM US/Eastern

- New Poll Conducted by Opinion Research Corporation -
NEW YORK, Jan. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Seventy-seven percent of Americans believe that the U.S. media is making the economic situation worse by projecting fear into people's minds.

The majority of those surveyed feel that the financial press, by focusing on and embellishing negative news, is damaging consumer confidence and damping investment, making a difficult situation much worse. The poll was conducted via telephone, December 4 - 7.

The US survey of 1000 adults was conducted by Opinion Research Corporation and is statistically representative of the total U.S. population. The survey question: "Do you think the financial press is making the economic crisis worse by projecting fear into people's minds?" While the overall response indicated that 77% of Americans answered YES, here are highlights of note: Household Incomes: $25k - $35k -- 79% answered YES $35k - $50k -- 88% answered YES $50k - $75k -- 76% answered YES $75k - more -- 78% answered YES Demographics: 85% of young adults (18-24 yrs old) answered YES 77% of males and females alike answered YES 65% of blacks answered YES. - Breitbart.com

I stopped watching Fox News after they defended and justified the price of gasoline at the pump hitting almost five bucks a gallon so I can’t say what Fox News and their talking heads are doing on this subject but I can say that I do watch MSNBC in the morning and at night. Morning Joe is a joke with non expert experts that claim to know the ins and outs of the economy and declare their words to be gospel before the real experts come on and give their opinions. I’ve literally watched as Mike Barnicle, a frequent contributor espoused on what is wrong with Detroit and the automakers and he has no clue what it takes to actually build a U.S. made car! He probably drives a friging Toyota! The same man was there spouting off on the problems of Wall Street but he wasn’t demanding as much from those criminals as he was of the working man or woman on the production lines at GM, Ford, or Chrysler?

My point is, just because you are a reporter does not make you an expert on every financial issue. But they sure as hell can scare the hell out of many people with their self righteous pompous attitude that is fed into our living rooms. Mind you, I’m not just talking about MSNBC either and their talking heads. All of the networks have the same hype built news magazines and I don’t mean to single out Mike Barnicle or MSNBC.

If I were contacted for this poll I would have more than positively stated that the media is starting a stampede against the economy simply because fear sells better than hope on television or the radio. Fluffy kitten stories are not news people want to hear. Drama, anger, fear, and corruption is what draws viewers and listeners.

There is a real danger in the media today, that danger is when reporters and hosts of a television or radio program for entertainment purposes are taken as fact based voices for the majority of the populous in America. These people are selling just air time and the facts may be further from the actual truth.

Whom would you trust more? Zbigniew Brzezinski a former Secretary of State and real life expert on foreign affairs or Joe Scarborough TV News show host? How about Rep. Barney Frank who has worked on real Banking Legislation change for decades or Bill O’Reilly, an extremely volatile and contraversial entertainment news personality? In each case the news entertainer maligned or tried their best to discredit the expert because they are the shows host. That is Yellow Journalism on television at its best. That sells better airtime than the actual truth that is kind of boring and ho hum news.

Thank you Memeorandum for the news tip...

Papamoka