Topic: NewsBusters
A Nov. 27 NewsBusters post by Clay Waters claimed that a New York Times article "displayed plenty of pessimism about the U.S. economy after years of foreign-financed easy money" and that an accompanying graphic showed that the Times "no doubt wanted to convey ... a fearful, sinking feeling among U.S. consumers" that the economy is heading for a recession.
But Waters failed to note that, as Media Matters details, the Times article examines both the good and bad sides of the economy, as well as good and bad effects of a possible recession, and does not describe a recession as a foregone conclusion. In fact, the article points out: "It is worth bearing in mind that the American economy has a history of unexpected resilience in the face of supposedly grim prospects. Moreover, some parts of the economy are enjoying good times, notably farmers able to cash in on the making of ethanol," adding, "The most likely outcome envisioned by many is a slowdown or a mild recession." This would seem to contradict Waters' claim that the article is filled only with "pessimism."
The longer version of Waters' post on TimesWatch adds an excerpt from the article that includes the "unexpected resilience" line but not the statement that "a slowdown or a mild recession" is the "most likely outcome."
