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Investing 101 - Mar 12, 2006 - Printable Version
- Freedom of the Press?
by Mark Faulk
Let’s be blunt here: FREEDOM OF THE PRESS IS DEAD. Well, if it’s not already dead, it’s teetering on the brink, on life support. Over the past couple of weeks, America has listened as the bizarre saga of three so-called “journalists”, Herb Greenberg (MarketWatch.com), Carol Remond (Dow Jones), and Jim Cramer (CNBC), who were subpoenaed by the SEC, then seemingly let off the hook by SEC Chairman Chris Cox,, then put back in limbo by Cox and others at the SEC, has infolded on TV and in the press. The immediate reaction from the press was swift and undeniable: this is about the First Amendment, this is a violation of Freedom of the Press. Dozens of newspapers chimed in, and it seemed pretty cut and dried, Some even went so far as to call for Cox’s resignation.
Never mind that the SEC clearly stated that they don’t issue subpoenas to reporters lightly, and that they don’t do it often, either. Why would the press suddenly believe that they would just start tossing off subpoenas to journalists for no reason whatsoever?
The answer is simple: the SEC wouldn’t issue subpoenas for no reason whatsoever, and the “press” knows that. The across the board outcry was orchestrated by the very publications who scream about being allowed to remain independent voices. I’m not saying that they all emailed each other and got their stories straight before they printed them, because that would be stupid, especially since the subpoenas issued to Greenberg, Remond, and Cramer included handing over emails to the SEC.
But unbiased, objective freedom of the press (especially the financial press)? It’s dead, and here’s why:
Here’s how it works: Let’s say that a Dow Jones reporter (such as Carol Remond),gets subpoenaed by the SEC, and a MarketWatch reporter (say….Herb Greenberg) is subpoenaed as well. And then, a CNBC “commentator” (Jim Cramer?) is subpoenaed a few days later.
Suddenly, almost respected major financial publication in the country seems to be coming out in defense of the three poor journalists, who are just trying to do their jobs as, well, as journalists. First, CNBC stands behind their boys Greenberg and Cramer, even as both reporters throw tantrums in front of all of America, and as Cramer flaunts his apparent invincibility by repeatedly trashing and defacing his subpoena on CNBC.
Doesn’t matter. MarketWatch will back them both up, and then Barron’s will jump onboard, and maybe we’ll get Reuters in there too, all screaming about the First Amendment and Freedom of the Press, and finally, the most respected one of all, The Wall Street Journal, will come out and say, “First Amendment claims were flying hard and fast, and not without cause.”
There’s only one problem here: Dow Jones owns MarketWatch, Dow Jones owns Barron’s, Dow Jones even owns….The Wall Street Journal. And that isn’t all. Dow Jones also owns Factiva, a web-based business venture, in a “joint venture” with….Reuters. And, Dow Jones owns half of CNBC Asia and CNBC Europe in a joint venture with….NBC. And just for fun, they also own Smart Money Magazine in a joint venture with the Hearst Corporation. Throw in the Greenberg and Cramer ties to TheStreet.com and you’ve pretty much covered your bases.
So, in summary: Dow Jones either owns or is connected to MarketWatch, Barron’s, The Wall Street Journal, Reuter’s, NBC, CNBC, Smart Money Magazine, and its reporters have strong ties to TheStreet.com. Oh yeah, they also own 34 weekly or daily newspapers scattered across the U.S.
Freedom of the Press, anyone? These guys all sleep together in one of those giant round Austin Power’s beds. Once they’ve created their very own “journalistic outcry”, it’s easy to get the rest of the press to follow suit.
It’s time to wake up, America. Once again, you’ve been had. Want to read unbiased news coverage on the stock market scandal? Forget about NBC, CNBC, Reuters, Barron’s, The Wall Street Journal, Smart Money, and TheStreet.com….and most of all, forget about Dow Jones.
In fact, as we’ve said before on these pages, you can pretty much forget about objective reporting at all in the major media, because all of the power in the media, much like our political system, is concentrated in the hands of a few powerful groups. Don’t be fooled by the different logos, letterheads, and locales, the strings are pulled by the same people.
The only way to save our First Amendment, the only way to insure Freedom of the Press, is to look away from the Corporate Media, and dig a little deeper for the Faulking Truth.
(Editor's note: In our next article, we'll look at one reporter as an example of how the financial media syndicate has even permeated the so-called "liberal media".)
Mark Faulk is the Editor of The Faulking Truth, and the author of the upcoming book entitled "The Naked Truth," due out in June, 2006. For more information on the book and on the stock market scandal, go to http://www.faulkingtruth.com , and to pre-order your copy, go to http://www.theownersgroupinc.com/cart/
For another great article about media bias on this issue, read "SEC Subpoenas Journalists; The reports the Media won’t tell you", by Dave Patch at http://www.investigatethesec.com/20060312DP.htm
For more on the ties between the Corporate Media and Wall Street, go to:
The Circle of Greed: The Only Bull in this Stock Market is a Cash Cow
http://www.faulkingtruth.com/Articles/Investing101/1049.html
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