Do We Share Any Blame?

7 July 2009

2 minute read

Flaming didn't start with the Internet - its long history in pre-electronic media probably extends all the way back to stone-chiseled tablets. But its sheer abundance lately has inured us to childish rants even when they occupy prime space in once-respected media outlets.

The July 3 issue of Rolling Stone, for instance, carries a lengthy diatribe that blames Goldman Sachs for, in the magazine's own words, "every major market manipulation since the Great Depression." Its author, Matt Taibbi, was also responsible for a March essay that said the current financial crisis arose from having too much power in the hands of "bald guys."

A country, it's been said, gets the journalists and the prostitutes it deserves. There's no need to single out Matt Taibbi: the mainstream media are full of similar stories that pander to public prejudice and glorify financial illiteracy.

Do we in finance share any blame for these torrents of swill that flow like a force of nature?

It's obvious our industry has done a wretched job educating the broad public about what we do and how.

So, should we in the trenches be doing more to press our industry's leaders to take a higher and more effective public profile, in order to combat the disinformation?

AUTHOReFinancialCareers News

Insider Comment

le
leavingfinan
22 July 2009
yes, as hard a pill it is to swallow, we do.
www.leavingfinance.com
Reply
rh
rhdsouza
9 July 2009
Yes, the Finance industry has been closely tied with the current mess. It is just the nature of things. Fannie/Freddy had to kowtow to the Barney Franks and friends of Angelos of this country and 'roll the dice' on cheap loans to the Acorn crowd. They then had to make sure that they were able to contain the inherent risks. Enter Sachs,JP,Citi et al. These institutuions, relying on the 'inherent govt guarantee on Fannie/Freddy' bought the mortgage paper and re-packaged them for sales (and a fat fee) to schmuks like me who believed our Govt was as good as its word. It was financial intermidiation at its best, except that when the defaults hit during an election cycle the Barney Franks et al made hay and the rest of us got the short end of the shtick! Greenspan had said he thought the banks would look after themselves and not be so highly leveraged. But why, when they got the wink/nod from Washington. Maybe the lesson learnt is to keep Washington in the DC area and not invite them to Wall or Main street. Hopefully its not too late. 2010 is around the corner. Also best to note that the alphabet soup of agencies we have created are useless.
Reply
le
leavingfinancedotcom
8 July 2009
Obviously this author sounds a little extreme and takes it a bit too far but as you allude to, that's the media.
I would say finance has to take the rough with the smooth. No doubt the industry does deserve a large portion of blame for the greed of so many. So when the chips are down, "finance" as an industry, take the criticism like a "man" and work to make constructive improvements and preventative measures for the next time.
Reply