We Get It: The Stock Market Is Sinking

Yesterday I mocked President Trump for being more concerned with the stock market than with the coronavirus. I stand by that, but it’s hard to blame him too much when I wake up to headlines like this:

Sure, you say, but that’s the Wall Street Journal. They’re supposed to be obsessed with the stock market. But here’s the New York Times:

And the Washington Post has a live feed so you can watch the stock market crater before your eyes:

I could forgive this infatuation with the stock market if it was connected to some actual change in the broader economy, but it’s not. It’s handy only because most economic indicators are calculated monthly at best, and that’s boring. The stock market may not have much to say about the real-life state of the economy, but it changes daily—hourly, even—and that makes it exciting.

But that’s no excuse. A serious piece about how the coronavirus is likely to affect the global economy is fine. But stock porn? Spare me.

DONALD TRUMP & DEMOCRACY

Mother Jones was founded to do journalism differently. We stand for justice and democracy. We reject false equivalence. We go after stories others don’t. We’re a nonprofit newsroom, because the kind of truth-telling investigations we do doesn’t happen under corporate ownership.

And we need your support like never before, to fight back against the existential threats American democracy faces. Fundraising for nonprofit media is always a challenge, and we need all hands on deck right now. We have no cushion; we leave it all on the field.

It’s reader support that enables Mother Jones to report the facts that are too difficult, expensive, or inconvenient for other news outlets to uncover. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

payment methods

DONALD TRUMP & DEMOCRACY

Mother Jones was founded to do journalism differently. We stand for justice and democracy. We reject false equivalence. We go after stories others don’t. We’re a nonprofit newsroom, because the kind of truth-telling investigations we do doesn’t happen under corporate ownership.

And we need your support like never before, to fight back against the existential threats American democracy faces. Fundraising for nonprofit media is always a challenge, and we need all hands on deck right now. We have no cushion; we leave it all on the field.

It’s reader support that enables Mother Jones to report the facts that are too difficult, expensive, or inconvenient for other news outlets to uncover. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

payment methods

We Recommend

Latest

Sign up for our free newsletter

Subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

Get our award-winning magazine

Save big on a full year of investigations, ideas, and insights.

Subscribe

Support our journalism

Help Mother Jones' reporters dig deep with a tax-deductible donation.

Donate