Beitzel: CNBC nixes reporting for punditry

When Tucker Carlson calls you a partisan demagogue, you know you’re doing something right. … When Tucker Carlson calls you a partisan demagogue, you know you’re doing something right. That’s what he labeled Jon Stewart after Stewart conducted the most insightful and righteously agonizing interview in recent memory ‘- probably since the infamous ‘Crossfire’ fiasco. The grill session served up Jim Cramer, a stock-picking mad scientist and host of CNBC’s ‘Mad Money.’ After ‘The Daily Show’ ran a montage of toxic advice and lazy interviews from CNBC pundits, including Cramer’s perpetual endorsement of Bear Stearns, Cramer manned the mizzenmast of CNBC’s ship. He toured NBC-owned programs like ‘The Today Show’ and ‘Morning Joe,’ frantically defending himself and condescendingly threatening, ‘If Jon Stewart wants to debate the merits of Tier 1 capital versus common equity I’ll do it, but the guy’s a comedian.’ Unfortunately, Cramer did not rename his program ‘Passive-Aggressive Money,’ but he did follow through on his debate offer ‘- kind of. He appeared on ‘The Daily Show’ for an interview riddled with backpedaling, like when Cramer said, ‘I could do the Tier 1 capital. How many people don’t care about that?’ So much for debating the merits. Yet, populists celebrated this emasculation for many ill-founded reasons. Fact: Stewart conducted an exhaustive, well-researched interview. Fiction: Viewers should expect him to do so. Stewart is a giant mind, and he consistently provides a refreshing anti-authoritarian perspective. But when viewers and media outlets turn to him for objective analysis, it speaks more to the failure of self-proclaimed news outlets than Stewart’s ability to emulate Edward R. Murrow. Every second Joe Scarborough spends criticizing the journalistic prowess of Stewart ‘- whose resume includes ‘Death to Smoochy’ and ‘Half Baked’ ‘- is time wasted that Scarborough’s ‘news’ network, MSNBC, could use for substantive debate. Instead of trolling Huffingtonpost.com for information to parrot or sensationalizing a spat between two TV personalities, MSNBC reporters should conduct first-hand investigations into a root factor behind the economic hemorrhage and Stewart’s complaints: unreasonable consolidation of power in financial and media sectors. The problems are like a Mad Lib, as in, ‘Noun is too adjective to verb.’ For instance, ‘experts’ such as Cramer considered financial institutions like AIG and Lehman Brothers ‘too big to fail,’ whereas one of Stewart’s points was that CNBC was too avaricious to report. Network representatives wanted continued access to CEOs, because that gets ratings and credibility, but anchors engaged in sycophantic kowtowing, hindering their coverage. Like some politicians and executives they cover, news outlets like CNBC had a mission, but success tainted them and assimilated them into the Establishment. At least Stewart seemed to accuse them of that. In one heated moment, he said, ‘You all know what’s going on … You knew what the banks were doing, and yet were touting it for months and months. The entire network was.’ The alternative might be more frightening: that CNBC had no idea what was going on. Ignorant pundits gilded themselves in Brooks Brothers suits and declared expertise. Meanwhile, the average fiduciary rube, like me, is hypnotized by a deluge of colorful stock tickers. Thomas Jefferson once said, ‘Where the press is free, and every man able to read, all is safe.’ All wasn’t safe on Wall Street, not because of a lack of freedom, but because CNBC didn’t function like the press and didn’t give viewers the proper guidance for financial literacy. Knowingly or not, CNBC cornered the market of financial TV programming, and the lack of competition allowed its personalities to shirk reporting duties, instead coasting on commentary. Maybe it’s not the answer, but an answer for these problems is to strengthen anti-trust laws in the United States. Cramer’s tour across NBC programs inadvertently showcased one of Stewart’s points: Media conglomerates create messages in choreographed, propaganda-like efforts aimed only at maintaining or increasing ratings. Even ‘Saturday Night Live,’ renegade comedy by reputation, conspicuously ignored this ubiquitous interview, despite its invitation for parody. A true media monopoly doesn’t literally exist, but the ‘news’ is an oligopoly.’ Televised current-event news is dominated by three conglomerates: CNN, Fox News and MSNBC. For televised financial news outside New York, though, the average viewer only has access to CNBC. While CNBC’s ratings don’t rival ‘American Idol,’ important governmental figures and opinion leaders turn to this financial false idol for policy advice. Sans competitors, CNBC relied on personality and commentary, probably because it’s cheap and easy. The federal government should place stricter limits on media ownership to encourage competition ‘- hey, Republicans, here’s how you can craft a 21st century populist message around old values like small business and the Constitution. The same goes for behemoth financial institutions. Critics should diversify their focus. Currently, they place an emphasis on whether more ‘too big to fail’ institutions like AIG will ‘fail.’ However, Congress should begin discussions on the ‘too big’ facet. The ability should not exist for a handful of companies to wreck the Earth’s economy. Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers and AIG are the obvious current villains, but companies like Wal-Mart should lose some clout, too ‘- Wal-Mart’s gross is more than the GDP of dozens of entire countries, including Israel and Poland. In the short term, Stewart’s interview has had some impact. Influential writers and professors started FixCNBC.com.’ Explicitly inspired by Stewart’s interview, it’s an open letter supporters can sign that asks CNBC to provide more responsible, candid analyses. Also, the phone number for CNBC is posted so armchair revolutionaries can register their grievances for redressing. An apologetic Cramer eventually pledged to Stewart that he would start including trenchant, sober analyses on his program ‘- or at least ‘getting back to the fundamentals on reporting’ in place of lionized personal opinions and shtick. ‘I think we made that deal right here,’ said Cramer. If he doesn’t, Cramer might get closer to Carlson. CNN canceled ‘Crossfire’ about three months after Stewart’s appearance. If you enjoy shouting wildly irresponsible and unfounded prognostications, e-mail some financial advice to Dave at drb34@pitt.edu.