Do the math

Many conservatives read stories about the economy and see a liberal conspiracy because the numbers are obviously being misconstrued. But the truth is, most journalists just suck at math:

Every year, scores of fledgling journalists pour out of liberal arts programs. Though many will need to pick through mountains of statistics in search of the truth, few have been taught the skills to do it.

They quickly become victims of advocacy groups pushing skewed statistics. Through ignorance, they may also start manufacturing their own flawed numbers. Since number-crunching beats (such as business and finance) are generally viewed as a tedious waystation en route to more interesting beats, few are enthusiastic about developing these skills. And their editors may not be in any position to help them.

The problem is compounded by the fact that journalists who do know how to read a balance sheet, run a regression, or analyze economic data, can generally get a job that pays a lot more than journalism.

I'm no math genius, but I try to get it right when I venture into the economics arena. One of the treasured books in my collection, which I've loaned out to a few journalist friends over the years, is "A Mathematician Reads the Newspaper." I recommend it for anyone who wants to make sense of the media's coverage of the business world. Believe it or not, it's a pretty fun read.