An email to the Irish Times’ Fintan O’Toole regarding the recently published report on Ireland’s financial crisis.

Dear Fintan,

Hope you’re well.

I’ve just scanned the Nyberg Report and wanted to ask whether you are planning to write anything about what this report says about the media’s role in the economic crisis? Adding a little depth to the single sentence mention you gave it in your last piece on Sean Quinn.

Here’s a few choice quotes from the report that would be a great basis for a long over due bit of soul searching about journalism. Fisk has done it for war reporting, it’s about time someone did it for economics reporting.

““nobody told them” there was a potential problem” (pp iii)

“…(“media”) had a relatively large influence on how pre-crisis developments were perceived,discussed and acted upon” (pp 6)

Groupthink more likely where “the media and the political system take a supportive rather than a challenging role” (pp 9)

“much of the media enthusiastically supported households’ preoccupation with property ownership” (pp 50)

“Anglo was widely admired,and lauded (by […] the media) as a role model for other Irish banks to emulate” (pp ii)

Best wishes,

For more on this subject:

Favouring the Rich – A Media Prerogative? (Dec 2009)

The Elephant in between the property ads (Feb 2009)

The Media and the Banking Bailout (Oct 2008)