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Articles by Ryan Chittum | Email the Author

 

1. The Audit

   Opening Bell: Are Your Chemicals Safe?

   June 12, 2008 07:29 AM

   The Washington Post on A1 writes that a tough new European law regulating the chemical industry is affecting the way U.S. products will be made—and its sounds like that’s a good thing. The new regulations will force companies... Continue reading

2. The Audit

   Opening Bell: Bernanke Talks Tough on Inflation

   June 11, 2008 07:58 AM

   Inflation is the topic du jour at The Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and Financial Times this morning. The Journal goes four columns wide with its story across the top of A1 saying that concerns are increasing... Continue reading

3. The Audit

   Opening Bell: Lehman’s Big Loss

   June 10, 2008 07:42 AM

   Lehman Brothers troubles deepened as it projected it would lose $2.8 billion in the second quarter—far more than already dour expectations—and announced it will dilute existing shareholders by 30 percent with a more-than-expected $6 billion in new capital. Financial... Continue reading

4. The Audit

   Opening Bell: New Fronts in the Credit Crunch

   June 9, 2008 07:37 AM

   The Financial Times and The Wall Street Journal pull out their crystal balls to predict what the credit crunch will squash next. It’s not a good sign that they come up with two different answers. The FT on page... Continue reading

5. The Audit

   Opening Bell: The Incredible Shrinking Tribune

   June 6, 2008 07:57 AM

   The Tribune Company is slashing its papers’ newshole and employees in a bid to stay afloat under its staggering debt. Across the company it will drop 500 pages of editorial content—about 12.5 percent of the total, The Wall Street... Continue reading

6. The Audit

   Opening Bell: Bond Insurers Headed South

   June 5, 2008 07:21 AM

   Prospects of another downturn in the credit crisis continued to increase, this time on an old standby: a credit-ratings firm threatening to downgrade the bond-insurance companies. Moody’s Investor Service said it is “most likely” going to downgrade MBIA and... Continue reading

7. The Audit

   Opening Bell: Will Americans Drop the SUV?

   June 4, 2008 07:26 AM

   (Sub-headline corrected on 6/8/08) The nation’s car market continued to suffer from high gas prices, with sales tumbling 11 percent in May and General Motors market share falling to the lowest level in more than half a century. GM... Continue reading

8. The Audit

   Opening Bell: Ken Thompson Kicked To Curb

   June 3, 2008 07:35 AM

   Wachovia dumped its CEO Ken Thompson after a series of bad moves over the last few years culminated in a punishing year once the credit crisis began—and less than a month after it forced him out as chairman. ... Continue reading

9. The Audit

   Opening Bell: Credit Crunch Hits Poor Students

   June 2, 2008 07:39 AM

   The New York Times says the credit crunch is hitting students at two-year colleges and “other less competitive institutions” as some big lenders pull back loans completely and others make it more expensive to borrow. The paper goes... Continue reading

10. The Audit

    Opening Bell: Oil Slicks

    May 30, 2008 07:54 AM

    The U.S. said it is investigating whether soaring oil prices are being unfairly manipulated, the papers report. The Wall Street Journal on A1 calls the announcement “unusual” because the investigation (or sixty investigations, it says) is still... Continue reading

11. The Audit

    Opening Bell: Lying About Libor

    May 29, 2008 07:30 AM

    The Wall Street Journal uses an interesting bit of enterprise reporting to suggest on A1 which banks are lying about their borrowing costs in order to make themselves appear healthier than they really are. The story follows the... Continue reading

12. The Audit

    Opening Bell: About That Loan…

    May 28, 2008 07:27 AM

    The Wall Street Journal reports that a growing number of investors, including big companies, are trying to force companies that sold them bum real-estate loans to take them back. On its Money & Investing front, the paper says... Continue reading

13. The Audit

    Debits & Credits: the FT Investigates

    May 27, 2008 09:55 AM

    A Credit to the Financial Times for a rare investigative piece, a well-executed probe into a bungled debt rating by Moody’s Investors Service and the subsequent cover-up by the firm. According to the FT investigation—words we... Continue reading

14. The Audit

    Opening Bell: Bear Stearns Saga, In Three Acts

    May 27, 2008 07:16 AM

    The Wall Street Journal kicks off a three-part series on “The Fall of Bear Stearns” with a story, accompanied by comic-book style illustrations, that says the firm missed several chances to save itself. The missed chances included execs... Continue reading

15. The Audit

    Opening Bell: Don’t Like Your Credit Rating?

    May 23, 2008 08:03 AM

    The Wall Street Journal on its Money & Investing cover looks at another shady practice of the credit-ratings firms—switching out analysts at the request of the companies whose debt they rate. Basically, important corporations who got too many... Continue reading

16. The Audit

    Opening Bell: Happy Summer Driving!

    May 22, 2008 07:30 AM

    The price of oil continues to rise like an uncapped gusher, soaring 3.3 percent to more than $133 a barrel yesterday—just in time for Memorial Day and the start of what promises to be the worst summer for road... Continue reading

17. The Audit

    Opening Bell: Thomson Atop Journal

    May 21, 2008 07:37 AM

    In a move that should surprise absolutely no one, Rupert Murdoch installed his pal Robert Thomson as the top editor of The Wall Street Journal, ending weeks of silly speculation that he might promote from within the paper.... Continue reading

18. The Audit

    Opening Bell: Is Housing Bill Tough Enough?

    May 20, 2008 07:44 AM

    The Senate finally nailed down a deal on a housing bill, something The Wall Street Journal deems worthy of page one, but which The Washington Post briefs on D2. The New York Times splits the difference, and... Continue reading

19. The Audit

    Opening Bell: Banks’ Creative Accounting

    May 19, 2008 07:42 AM

    Bloomberg says banks are “hiding” more than $35 billion in losses in (not so) plain sight. The wire service in an interesting report says they’re taking the losses on their balance sheets instead of their income statements, meaning... Continue reading

20. The Audit

    Opening Bell: Bad Numbers On Blackstone

    May 16, 2008 07:20 AM

    (The headline for this post was corrected at 1:55 p.m.) Blackstone Group had a bad first quarter. Just how bad? Take your pick from The Wall Street Journal and the two Timeses, which use different numbers. The WSJ... Continue reading

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