O'Reilly accused NY Times of "rooting for a recession"

During the November 26 edition of Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor, host Bill O'Reilly accused The New York Times of "rooting for a recession," citing a November 25 article reporting on both the possible positive and negative effects of a recession and featuring a graphic with the word "RECE$$ION" in large, red letters. However, while O'Reilly criticized the Times, as well as The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, for running recent "articles about a possible recession," he did not note a November 26 article in The Wall Street Journal -- owned by Fox News' parent company, News Corp. -- with the headline "Recession Fears Weigh Heavily on the Markets." Nor did O'Reilly mention that FoxNews.com columnist Susan Walker penned an October 26 column headlined, "5 Reasons Why We Are Closer to a Recession," in which she asserted that "recent follies in the credit and debt markets point to a strong possibility of an economic slowdown in the U.S."

Introducing the November 26 segment, O'Reilly stated: "What do you think of media rooting for America to lose in Iraq and rooting for a recession? The reason some do is because they want the Democratic Party to win elections, very simple." O'Reilly continued: "Over the Thanksgiving weekend, record crowds went shopping all across the USA. According to the National Retail Federation, 147 million shoppers turned out, up 5 percent from last year. Yet newspapers like The New York Times, The Atlanta Journal Constitution, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer all ran articles about a possible recession. Now that is possible. The economy may recede. But at this point, nobody knows."

Later in the segment, discussing the Times article with Fox News contributors Kirsten Powers and Margaret Hoover, O'Reilly stated: "[N]ow I'm saying to myself, look, [Times columnist] Paul Krugman has been rooting for a recession for the last eight years. It may happen. But isn't it wrong to root against your own company, even if it's for a political gain?" Powers responded, "I don't think that they're rooting for that. ... [W]hen you actually read the article, the setup was sort of: is there going to be a recession?" Referring to the graphic that accompanied the Times piece, O'Reilly asked, "Could the word recession have been any bigger? Could it have been any bigger?" O'Reilly later asked Powers, "You don't believe that The New York Times wants a recession?" to which she replied, "[N]o, I don't think so." O'Reilly went on to ask: "[W]hen you say you don't think The New York Times is rooting for a recession, do you have anything to base that on other than your clairvoyance?"

In fact, New York Times reporter Peter S. Goodman did write that a significant economic downturn "may ... be an unavoidable step toward purging the United States and the global economy of a major source of instability" and that some economists see a "mild recession" -- what he said was viewed by many as the likeliest scenario -- as "a way to fix the imbalances in world trade that are at the center of fears of a great unraveling." But he also wrote that "[i]t is worth bearing in mind that the American economy has a history of unexpected resilience in the face of supposedly grim prospects." At no point did he "root for" a recession.

The November 26 Journal article -- headlined "Recession Fears Weigh Heavily On the Markets" -- reported that the stock market is "sending an increasingly ominous signal that a U.S. recession could be near," but that the Federal Reserve and many economists retain "their view that the nation's economy can escape a downturn." From the article:

Battered stock and bond markets are sending an increasingly ominous signal that a U.S. recession could be near.

The markets, however, haven't swayed Federal Reserve officials and most private economists from their view that the nation's economy can escape a downturn and get back on a steadier course.

The disparity between those two views of the economy -- one growing bleaker, the other remaining sanguine -- stood out starkly last week.

Though it rose during Friday's shortened trading day, the Dow Jones Industrial Average -- at 12980.88 -- is 8.4% below its all-time high, set in October. Safe-haven Treasurys, meanwhile, have rallied as investors have lost confidence in a quick resolution of the U.S. housing slump and mortgage crisis, which are behind many of today's economic worries in both the U.S. and Europe.

But in an economic outlook released by the Fed, the central bank's policy makers said they expected U.S. economic growth to pick up as housing hits bottom and financial markets gradually resume more-normal functioning. Fed officials see the U.S. economy growing between 1.8% and 2.5% next year, according to minutes from their most recent meeting.

Additionally, in her October 26 FoxNews.com column, Walker wrote:

Here's a truism -- just because many people don't want something to happen doesn't mean it won't. An example: Recessions happen even though people don't want them to. Most people don't even want to think about an economic recession. For instance, here's the lead from a recent story in the Financial Times, "The R-word Surfaces on Wall Street":

"The R-word is usually avoided by Wall Street's economists. It tends to be a conversation-stopper when investment bank clients are told to prepare for the worst. 'It is like looking a client in the eye and telling them that their child is ugly,' says David Rosenberg, chief economist at Merrill Lynch. It is not what people want to hear" (Financial Times, Sept. 10, 2007).

But recent follies in the credit and debt markets point to a strong possibility of an economic slowdown in the U.S. Here are five reasons why I think we are closer to a recession than we were two months ago before the subprime mortgage market imploded.

In the November 25 article, the Times reported the possible effects of a recession, both positive and negative. From the article:

You need not be a Wall Street chieftain to feel the anxiety that has wrapped its arms around the American economy. The stock market seems locked in a downward spiral as one bank after another suffers its day of reckoning with bad mortgages. Companies are sharply cutting profit forecasts as the sense takes hold that American consumers are finally too loaded with debt to buy the next flat-screen television. The dollar has fallen to inglorious depths, turning Manhattan department stores into something like a Tijuana street market for Germans. One unpleasant word hovers large: recession.

How bad could things get? Pretty bad, say many economists. Not so bad that your grandfather's prescriptions for enduring the Great Depression need dusting off, but nasty enough to force many Americans to get reacquainted with living within their means. That could make life uncomfortable. It may also be an unavoidable step toward purging the United States and the global economy of a major source of instability -- an unhealthy dependence on the willingness of American consumers to keep buying even as debt mounts. Concerns that Americans must eventually grow thrifty, leaving factories from Guangzhou to Guatemala City scrambling for buyers, now sows unease around the world.

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. That said, most economists think the American economy is headed for a significant slowdown, as housing prices keep falling, consumers grow tight, and businesses cut investments.

The Federal Reserve last week said it expected the economy to grow 1.6 percent to 2.6 percent next year, a stark contrast from the 3.9 percent rate registered in the most recent quarter. Some see signs of a worst-case scenario -- a severe recession that would feature a plummeting stock market, a lower dollar and the loss of many jobs. That would make for an unpleasant year or two for Americans from most walks of life. It would probably drag down the world economy, as Americans put off purchases of everything from computers made in China to Italian-produced sports cars.

The most bearish indulge frighteningly gloomy tones. "The evidence is now building that an ugly recession is inevitable," declared Nouriel Roubini, an economist who was among the first to warn of the dangers of a real estate downturn, writing last week on his blog, the Global EconoMonitor. "When the United States sneezes the rest of the world gets the cold. And since the United States will not just sneeze, but is risking a serious case of protracted and severe pneumonia, the rest of the world should start to worry about a serious viral contagion."

Most economists are not so pessimistic. The most likely outcome envisioned by many is a slowdown or a mild recession. That would increase unemployment somewhat, and it would keep the stock market in the doldrums, but it would probably not be severe enough to significantly crimp economies abroad. And while it would impose pain, some see in this more moderate path a way to fix the imbalances in world trade that are at the center of fears of a great unraveling.

Americans have been buying staggering quantities of goods from overseas using money lent by foreigners. Foreign exporters have been relying on American consumers to keep them in business. For years, this dynamic has made for increasingly lopsided terms of trade: Last year, American imports outstripped exports by $764 billion, with foreigners stepping in to cover the difference.

As Media Matters for America has documented, O'Reilly has repeatedly attacked The New York Times (here, here, here, and here).

From the November 26 edition of Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor:

O'REILLY: "Impact" segment tonight: What do you think of media rooting for America to lose in Iraq and rooting for a recession? The reason some do is because they want the Democratic Party to win elections, very simple. Over the Thanksgiving weekend, record crowds went shopping all across the USA. According to the National Retail Federation, 147 million shoppers turned out, up 5 percent from last year. Yet newspapers like The New York Times, The Atlanta Journal Constitution, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer all ran articles about a possible recession. Now, that is possible. The economy may recede. But at this point, nobody knows.

Also, the crazy Seattle newspaper ran a big editorial about impeaching President Bush and Vice President Cheney, showing them in a mug shot situation. Now, how responsible are these loons out in Seattle? Irresponsible, I should say. With us now to discuss, Republican strategist Margaret Hoover and Fox News political analyst Kirsten Powers, a Democrat. Both are very responsible. They're never deemed to be irresponsible. All right, Powers, now look, a lot of people have said this to me. You've got these hordes of people running in at 4 in the morning to Macy's, throwing money at the cashier. And there's the little New York Times thing -- recession. All right, do we have that shot? We can show that -- and now I'm saying to myself, look, Paul Krugman's been rooting for a recession for the last eight years. It may happen, but isn't it wrong to root against your own company, even if it's for a political gain?

POWERS: I don't think that they're rooting for that. And I think if you look at -- look, people always put headlines out to get attention. But when you actually read the article, the setup was sort of: is there going to be a recession? There could be --

O'REILLY: Could the word "recession" have been any bigger?

POWERS: But --

O'REILLY: Could it have been any bigger?

POWERS: But they want to get people -- they want to draw people in with something --

O'REILLY: You're right.

POWERS: -- that they're concerned about. And polls have shown that there are a lot -- majority of Americans actually do feel that we're in a recession --

O'REILLY: You don't believe that The New York Times wants a recession?

POWERS: And I don't -- no, I don't think so.

O'REILLY: No?

POWERS: And The Economist also ran an article in -- an editorial, arguing that we very well may be headed for a recession. I don't think they're rooting for it. I think there are people that are concerned about it. There are economists who think that it's possible --

O'REILLY: All right, is there -- when you say you don't think The New York Times is rooting for a recession, do you have anything to base that on other than your clairvoyance?

POWERS: Well, you know, I don't -- I can't really get into the minds of The New York Times people -- we've had this conversation before --

O'REILLY: You can't? But consistently, they've taken --

POWERS: But there's a difference between, you know, when you take a liberal columnist, perhaps, who may be looking for the Bush administration to fail, I will disagree with that.

O'REILLY: You're not going to name any names, right?

POWERS: But in that article, I really think that they laid out -- here's some arguments for why we may be in a recession --

O'REILLY: OK.

POWERS: -- and here's some for why we may not.