If we really are going to change investing for the better, the media has a huge part to play.
I’ve written before about the FT and the excellent work it’s done to explain how asset management really works. But it’s time to applaud another media outlet that’s not afraid to speak its mind; that doesn’t simply regurgitate fund industry press releases, and that genuinely tries to educate end investors.
Bloomberg Gadfly describes itself as “fast-paced, data-driven commentary about the most pivotal corporate, financial and market news of the day”.
I recently met one of its regular commentators at Evidence-Based Investing West in California, and he summed it up like this:
“(Gadfly) is devoted to a data-driven approach to writing. We look at the news and ask, Is there evidence to explain financial phenomena better? We show the evidence. We show you what the data shows. That allows you to make up your own mind. You can agree with our conclusions or not. But we think that’s a more transparent way to write opinions about the financial markets.”
We need far more gadflies in financial journalism — more journalists whose job it is to challenge intellectual orthodoxies, to find out and explain what the evidence actually says. And yes, to give the industry an occasional nasty bite.
By the way, you’ll find the full set of Nir’s Gadfly articles here. You might also want to check out this video interview I did with him at EBI West on the importance of controlling your investment costs, on the Capital Partners YouTube channel.
Robin is a journalist and campaigner for positive change in global investing. He runs Regis Media, a niche provider of content marketing for financial advice firms with an evidence-based investment philosophy. He also works as a consultant to other disruptive firms in the investing sector.
