Jim Cramer vs. Jon Stewart

Week Long Feud of the Century!

I am sure that many of you have heard the buzz on “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” about the conflict between Jon and Jim Cramer of CNBC’s Mad Money. We talked about this in the BIGGERPOCKETS.com forums today and it got me all fired up!

While Cramer’s intelligence level for finance would make me look like a 3rd grader, I feel that he is simply trying to serve two masters: Wall Street and CNBC/NBC. He answers to the higher powered executives at CNBC/NBC, and the CEO/Wall St in-crowd. The guy is in a real pinch here.

One of the eye-openers for people in this interview should be this: Cramer said, “Mad Money is an Entertainment show about business”

He also went on to say that the goal (Code Decipher: NBC Executive pressure for ratings) was to attract the younger viewer who did not care about P/E ratios and sound financial data. (Code Decipher: Get the lazy 30 second sound byte generation to invest)

We need to understand that Cramer can not rip these CEO’s apart. They are the people that he depends on for connections and insider news. He can not cut these guys off at the hip, as the politics of Wall Street and the Media would crucify him.

Is it right? No…..but it is the way it is.

People need to stop depending on the television to make all of their decisions for them.

Gladiator Breaking News Alert: 80% of what you see on television is not accurate, and the other 20% is overblown!

Do you realize that many people actually get most of their news from shows like John Stewart and The View? While entertaining, they are fun and opinion based programs, not journalistic reporting.

I see the larger problem as this: The market became a living, breathing celebrity that everyone wanted to be a part of.

There was Brittany Spears, Tom Cruise, and the Stock Market. Our culture is obsessed with celebrity!

Since I brought up journalism, it can be difficult to find. Modern day news has become more about entertainment than reporting. Why? Ratings and advertising dollars!! It is also what the people want! How can we fault the networks for that. They are simply giving the American people what they have asked for.

I personally enjoy watching many of these shows, but take them with a grain of salt. I do not run out and buy stocks based on what Cramer, Cavuto, or any other analyst tells me too. If something looks interesting, I do my due diligence.

The goal of any investor should be to make the best decision possible based on the goals of your portfolio. There are a large percentage of people that watch these shows religiously and do not have an investment plan. If you work hard and do things right, the sky is the limit!

Point to Ponder: There is no lazy way to start creating wealth.

What makes me upset about the kind of buzz this topic is generating is this: Everybody wants to throw stones and nobody wants to take any blame.

Please do not think I am preaching from some mountaintop here, I have been guilty of many of the issues I am talking about in this post. I am no different than the next person out there. I have made, and will continue to make mistakes. The change that I committed to is that I work hard to focus on my awareness and think things through!

Let me say something very clear here: If you bought a stock, and your decision was only based on a guy like Cramer that hit a Boo-yah button, you might want to re-evaluate your investment plan.

To blame him for making bad picks and causing a person to lose money seems ridiculous to me. It only adds to the “Pass the Buck” mentality that America has taken on over the last few decades. While I am in no way implying that he has no responsibility, there comes a point in time when we as investors need to look in the mirror.

Please take my advice: Read investment books, educate yourself on what makes a company/property a good investment, learn what diversification means, and perform your own due diligence.

Your retirement depends on it, and I want to see you succeed!

Have a Profitable Day Everyone!

Harrison Painter