Great link illustrating the bullshit on this....
http://www.firstthings.com/theanchoress/2009/05/07/happy-fun-headline-game-for-rainy-days/Simply pay attention to headlines and first lines of news stories about the economy (or the war, or anything!). It’s educational! Teach your children how to compare and contrast by studying how first lines can make economic news seem either positive or negative, for fun economic, polling and presidential impact!
Here’s one!
Headline: New jobless claims plunge, retail sales improve.
Sub-header: New jobless claims plunge unexpectedly to 610,000, while retail sales improve in April
New applications for jobless benefits plunged to the lowest level in 14 weeks, a possible sign that the massive wave of layoffs has peaked. Still, the number of unemployed workers getting benefits climbed to a new record.
First line: positive.
Now, let’s look at another news story, this time from 2005:
Headline:
There go 800,000 jobs out the door
Subheader:
UCLA: Housing slump to hit building and finance employment, slow the economy, but no recession seen.
The expected downturn in the housing market could end up costing 800,000 construction and finance jobs, putting a big dent in economic growth over the next two years, a report from UCLA said.
First line: Really, really negative. Incredibly negative. Terrifying.
Yes, that’s right, President Bush would have killed for a “first line positive” on economic stories while he was president; unemployment was 4.8% and tax-revenues were at all-time highs. Instead, during his presidency, we got, “Economists worry about possible downturns, despite 3 percent growth in this quarter.”
Think I’m kidding? Then read this and remember.
Remember this?
Our pals over in the MSM certainly do know how to confuse an issue. Check out these two headlines from the SAME news service, and the SAME writer, one day apart:
Greenspan Gets High Marks Despite Economy
U.S. economy grows at strong 3.8% rate in third quarter, despite hurricanes
That second headline, of course, is from the Canadian press who I suppose have less invested in trying to continually portray the economy as “troubling
