http://mediamatters.org/blog/2015/03/13/why-are-cnbc-bloomberg-and-other-major-financia/202888
Media outlets like CNBC, The Wall Street Journal, Fox Business, and Bloomberg Television have been giving a platform to a disgraced financial firm that was fined $1.5 million by the Securities and Exchange Commission for engaging in "deliberate fraud" and profiting from "false statements."
The firm, Stansberry Research, heavily markets itself in conservative media by catering to right-wing audiences' fears of President Obama and big government. It predicts doomsday "End of America" financial scenarios that involve waves of violence, "martial law," and the destruction of the American economy. Last year, for instance, Stansberry claimed on its EndofAmerica.com website that on "July 1st, 2014," "'H.R. 2847' goes into effect. It will usher in the true collapse of the U.S. dollar, and will make millions of Americans poorer, overnight." (America and the dollar did not end.)
Numerous observers have criticized Stansberry's marketing practices as "misleading," "dubious," "questionable," and "an example of the worst excesses of financial marketing."
Truth in Advertising, a nonprofit organization "against false advertising and deceptive marketing," criticized a "misleading" Stansberry marketing scheme related to getting "free" silver from banks.
Christopher A. Hopkins, an executive at an investment advisory firm, wrote in the Chattanooga Times Free Press that Stansberry's ads are "an example of the worst excesses of financial marketing intended to cynically exaggerate and exploit legitimate concerns." He added that the ads "are so pervasive that many financial advisers find themselves entreating nervous clients to ignore them. This type of marketing abuse complicates life for the vast majority of advisers who conscientiously focus on their clients' best interest."
The firm also paid a $55,000 civil monetary penalty to the Social Security Administration in 2011, while not admitting wrongdoing, to settle an allegation it broke federal law.
is there anything we can trust, Pres. works to implement consumer advocacy's to protect us from this type of scamming while republicans fight to keep the status quo, that protects their perks and money for "assisting big business" you know deregulation. these obstructions to reign in such perverse policies that hurt we the people is the same thing Scott Walker and other republicans are doing to kill unions both unions and consumer advocates give us voice and are fighting for us while our gov't elected and paid to do what the agencies do are really not interested more money and power with big business than you and your neighbors.
