Press Criticism

With control of the House of Representatives about to change hands, a recent New York Times article worried over whether Washington's "new power couple," President Obama and presumptive Speaker of the House John Boehner, could get along. And certainly, “working together” and “forging bonds” sound good, in an “everything-I-need-to-know-I-learned-in-kindergarten” sort of way. But it’s not necessarily the case that more comity will produce better outcomes — or, more to the point, who those outcomes will be good for.

Reporting that obscures the central role played by mortgage lenders in creating the housing crisis has aptly been described as “blame the borrowers” coverage. Last week, the Journal added a "blame the lawyers" wrinkle. Readers are told that it is "the growth of a legal sub-specialty called foreclosure defense" that has "sown confusion and turmoil in the housing market."

Claims go entirely untested.