Jon Friedman Vs. CNBC - When Wimps Attack

Jon Friedman a commentator for Marketwatch.com, is the embodiment of a 3^rd rate journalist. His articles usually have the punch of a French Poodle in a Michael Vicks dog fight. As a featured writer for MarketWatch.com I've never seen anything he's written that was anything close to a well researched, cutting edge, article. He usually writes little girlie girl articles like when he wrote that Sarah Palin would get a job as a TV anchorwoman or commentator if McCain lost the election, Written during the heat of last year's election, coming a week or two before the election, the article had all the relevancy of someone commenting on the ship's entertainment policy during the Titanic sinking. I sent him an email saying that people in Philly didn't get Sarah Palin and basically thought she was an unqualified boob. I wondered if he had the equivalent of a schoolboy crush on his nerdy Sunday school teacher. He replied with a nasty prediction that the Philadelphia Phillies would loose the World Series. Apparently, his sports acumen is on a par with his journalism. When he cowered to express any political opinions in his column before the election, I was greeted by his headline the day after the election - " George W Bush - Good Riddance."

Since Jon Friedman usually has the balls of a daffodil, I was a little surprised when he launched a series of attack articles against CNBC, lauding Jon Stewart's comedic attack on Jim Cramer and the network. That was, until I realized that Friedman works for NewsCorp, who recently launched a rival Fox Business Channel. Apparently, the old media mogul (mole-hole) Rupert Murdoch and his mud slinging cohorts put Jon up to it. I guess Jon Friedman figured he'd never be up for a Pulitzer Prize, and then looked at the unemployment figures, before making his smart career choice.

The funny thing is that even when Jon Friedman is on the attack he equivocates. The interesting thing is that Jim Cramer who says he's a Democrat, is one of the few guys on CNBC who is an advocate for the small investor. Like Jon Friedman I agree that Jim Cramer, who's virtue is on a parallel with Myer Lansky, ( Lansky was generally a pretty agreeable chap when he wasn't planning the occasional mob hit, like on his childhood best friend, Bugsy Segal) deserved everything that Jon Stewart dished out. However, Cramer expressed real remorse and apologized for not predicting the financial collapse. And for that he should be commended.

Although I like Jim Cramer and believe him to have 20 times the business acumen and knowledge of lightweight Jon Friedman, I find his shtick to be ethically challenged.

The biggest conflict of interest is that he sells an expensive email service on his Street.com website for stock tips. He charges about $20 a month for stock tips to his Daily Booyah service. Cramer has touted purchase of a stock and then two days later issued a sell on his CNBC show. Although Cramer only trades personally for his charitable trust, and thus doesn't gain from his stock tips, he keeps the profits from his email service. The more people watch his show, the more money his stock tip service generates. The whole thing encourages short term trading and if Marketwatch hired a statistician to compute the investment returns of Cramer's picks, at this point the results would be dismal. Booyah!

Apparently, Jon Friedman's mud slinging orders included a hands off Larry Kudlow policy. Kudlow is the most despised commentator on CNBC according to the Marketwatch comment page. Here is an astute comment by a guy who goes by the name Lonely Planet: "Stewart should have gone after Kudlow. He is the worst of the worst, cheerleading a 'goldilocks' economy through the whole economic collapse. The whole stocks for the long run...BS makes Kudlow far worse than anyone else at CBNC. Not to mention he is totally in bed with establishment. Speaking of being in bed with the establishment its nice to see Jon Friedman enjoying himself this much. Him and his bosses (that he is trying to please) at Newscorp couldn't be more gleeful in the unfortunate turn of events for CNBC.

Lonely Planet appears to be an astute consumer of CNBC and Marketwatch. I couldn't agree with him more. During Bush's disastrous 8 years Larry Kudlow (crudlow) licked more Republican ass than Roy Cohn at a boy's night out.

Kudlow, who used to be an economist, is a right wing political pundit, who should have no place on a business network. Kudlow was chief cheerleader for the anti regulation establishment that caused AIG's takeover, and most of the financial collapse.

Exuding and easy going respectful demeanor to his guests, nevertheless Kudlow has no sympathy for working people. Once I heard Crudlow say that, "steelworkers were overpaid." Having some familiarity with the steel plants in PA. I found that comment particularly offensive because steel workers have suffered more than any other trade, during years of downsizing. And many steelworkers have lost their pensions when companies went bankrupt and were restructured.

Indicative of Jon Friedman's lack of research, he hasn't touched on the worst of CNBC'S sins and just repeats what Jon Stewart says without the essential humorous element. Kind of like a guy telling a joke without the punch line.

Who hired Kudlow and what is he doing on a business show? Obviously, Kudlow was hired by the right wing Republican big wigs like Jack Welch, who run GE, CNBC's parent, to insure two George W Bush election victories. Even after last week's CNBC media attacks, Kudlow is still up to a good Republican tuckus lickin festival. This Thursday, Ann Coulter, the insane, right wing blonde bombshell, (that's if you like anorexic women with 12 inch waistlines) is on Larry's show. In my brief viewing experience of Ann Coulter, I've heard her make antisemetic comments, and call John Edwards a faggot during the primaries, which is a strange comment, since Edwards knocked up a woman and fathered a child out of wedlock. Coulter has admitted to knowing nothing about business, and for once I agree with her.

During Crudlow's tenure he has managed to seduce some of the other anchor people to his greed is good, sleazeball credo. I witnessed both Joe Kernen and Michelle Caruso Cabrera mouthing Larry's anti workingman ravings when hosting or cohosting his show. I warned Joe Kernen in an email, that expressing political opinions on a business network was unprofessional and got back a humorous, pompous, email correcting my spelling mistakes. Apparently Kernen is an intelligent guy, with a biting wit, who fell victim to Larry Kudlow disease, a frequent occurrence on CNBC.

A few years ago, I realized that Bloomberg Business Channel was available on my Comcast Network and I made the switch. I like the serious, hard working, apolitical, Bloomburg crew. I haven't watched CNBC in a few years. Like Jon Stewart told Cramer, "the business news is not a fucking game."

I've never been a viewer of the right wing, sensationalist, Fox News. A few years ago there was a documentary about it. - "Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism."I watched Bill O Reilly physically threaten a pacifist who opposed the War in Afghanistan, on his show. The pacifist had acted calm and respectful, only to be bullied and threatened by O Reilly. I've always supported the War in Afghanistan, but I was sickened by O Reilly's boorish behavior. As a lifelong resident of Philly I'm familiar with pacifist groups like the Quakers who oppose all wars and respect the good work they've done for our city, like running some excellent private schools.

One day when I was listening to the Terry Gross radio show, on NPR, I heard Bill O Reilly walk off her show when Terry asked him some hard questions. It was amazing that O Reilly felt threatened by the diminutive Terry Gross. It was only the 1^st or 2^nd time in her 30 year tenure that she had an incident on her radio show. Apparently O Reilly could dish it out but couldn't take it.

It's the height of hypocrisy for News Corp's MarketWatch to attack CNBC when they've been sensationalizing their Fox News and acting as cheerleaders for the worst elements of the Bush Administration for eight years. Fox News, CNBC, Jon Friedman, - A plague on all your houses - I'm watching Bloomberg.

The end.