ASHE SCHOW: 462 Financial Journalists Were Asked Their Political Leanings. Guess How Many Said They Were Conservative.

Less than five percent. But there’s also this:

“First, financial journalists have stronger incentives to produce original information and analysis than to disseminate information already in the public domain, and they rely heavily on private communication with company management for information. Second, sell-side analysts play an important role in informing financial journalists, many of whom lack financial sophistication. Third, the incentives for sensationalism in the business press assumed in prior research are dominated by incentives for accurate, timely, in-depth, and informative reporting, while the quid pro quo incentives assumed in prior literature (e.g., putting a positive spin on company news to maintain access to inside sources) are substantial.”

Get that? Journalists covering the financial industry don’t know the industry and give favorable coverage to keep access. Sounds like pretty much every other type of journalist.

Journalists often present themselves as vital gatekeepers of news and information, but not in the direction you’d hope.

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h/t SG

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