CJR : The Audit

Audit D.C. Notes: The FT Looks at the Lobbyist Set; WSJ on Credit Agencies, NPR on the Dow, Etc.

2010-03-16T21:02:13Z

By Holly Yeager The Financial Times takes a look something that all too often gets treated like wallpaper in Washington, the persistent power of lobbyists. As Stephanie Kirchgaessner, my former colleague, explains: But little has changed in the way Washington works or the way the game is played. Despite attempts by the president to institute reform in the executive branch, lobbyists are...

Reporting from the Examining Room

2010-03-16T17:55:26Z

By Holly Yeager

Leeway for Lehman Brothers

2010-03-16T15:33:01Z

By Ryan Chittum I suppose we shouldn't be surprised that John Carney thinks "We Should Not Criminally Prosecute Lehman Executives." After all, this is someone who is a fan of insider trading, which he says "harms no one" and ought to be legalized, and who thinks the Community Reinvestment Act played a significant role in causing the crisis. Despite his...

Audit Notes: Strong Leder, Online Ads, CNBC Deathmatch

2010-03-16T00:38:15Z

By Ryan Chittum

Blogs Beat the Press on the Lehman Brothers Scandal

2010-03-15T21:20:32Z

By Ryan Chittum

Audit D.C. Notes: NYT Does Well at (Trade) School; WaPo on Earmarks, Squeezed in Ypsilanti, Etc.

2010-03-15T21:01:29Z

By Holly Yeager

China Stories: Good, Bad, Indifferent

2010-03-15T17:57:54Z

By Holly Yeager

Michael Lewis Drops Some Wisdom on Wall Street

2010-03-15T09:44:29Z

By Ryan Chittum I haven't read Michael Lewis's sure-to-be blockbuster The Big Short yet, but everybody ought to watch his appearance on 60 Minutes last night. The big news I guess would be that Lewis thinks Wall Street is "so disconnected from American life that it can't be sustained," in the words of Steve Kroft. "He thinks it may take a while, but...

Audit Notes: Google "Grandeur," Toxic Pet, Stop the Presses?

2010-03-12T22:28:39Z

By Ryan Chittum Valleywag's Ryan Tate hammers Google about its "Six Delusions of Grandeur." Tate points to this stunning quote in Fortune from CEO Eric Schmidt: "All this information that you have about us... Does that scare everyone in this room?" The questioner asked... "Would you prefer someone else?" Schmidt shot back... "Is there a government that you would prefer to...

The Lehman Scandal Breaks Wide Open

2010-03-12T18:38:03Z

By Ryan Chittum Will Repo 105 be the Chewco and JEDI of this crisis, and are we finally about to see some people on Wall Street go to jail? Yesterday's blockbuster 2,200 page report on Lehman Brothers by a court-appointed examiner shows Lehman Brothers executives moving $50 billion in toxic assets off-balance-sheet to deceive investors about its financial health. Finally it seems...

Audit Notes: Investigative Budgets, Cable BS, The Audit Outsourced

2010-03-12T02:33:47Z

By Ryan Chittum

The Really Real S&P 500

2010-03-11T22:54:36Z

By Ryan Chittum

Gensler, Derivatives, and the Causes of the Crisis

2010-03-11T17:17:59Z

By Ryan Chittum The New York Times profiles Gary Gensler, the Goldman alum and former deregulation advocate who's now pursuing reform with the proverbial zeal of a convert. It's a good idea and mostly well-executed, but I want to look at a few subplots. Here's one quote up high regarding Gensler's push to regulate derivatives: Conrad P. Voldstad, the association’s chief executive,...

Audit Notes: FT "News," Overdrafts Over at BofA, No Marketwatchdog

2010-03-11T03:31:38Z

By Ryan Chittum

Audit D.C. Notes: WSJ Good on Wall Street Muni Fees; Newsweek on Design, Bloomberg Goes Contrarian on Obama, Etc.

2010-03-10T20:54:32Z

By Holly Yeager The Wall Street Journal digs into Build America Bonds, enacted as part of last year’s stimulus plan “to create jobs building roads, schools and hospitals.” Turns out the underwriters who pitch these muni bonds aren’t exactly giving away their services to help the team. On average, the underwriting fees for Build America Bonds are $8.20 per $1,000, according to...