When you are on track to spend a few trillion dollars, communication is everything. People have to feel they are getting something for their hard earned money. That progress is being made. It’s like the big, red thermometer with dollars on the side during the charity drive. Progress. See?
So the Federal Reserve is sort of getting the idea that, along with its move to become the largest, most unwieldy spender of cash in the known universe, that it needs its own cable channel. FedTV or suchlike. Of course, it’s just starting with press conferences.
Officials at the U.S. Federal Reserve have discussed holding regular press briefings to help improve public understanding of unusual actions by the Fed in times of crisis, a Fed official said on Tuesday.
Press conferences have been weighed among other ideas, the official said. The Fed has sought during recent upheaval to explain its actions to a broader public, the official said, citing Chairman Ben Bernanke’s recent television interview and willingness to take questions from reporters after a speech.
We always happy to hear from The Beard, and certainly he’s less obscure than Greenspan (Greenspan TV might as well have been dubbed in Farsi) but we wonder if anything can “help improve public understanding of unusual actions by the Fed in times of crisis.” (Like that’s possible). Are we just being crotchety? Maybe “Real Life: I Work At The Fed” or perhaps “Real World: D.C.” is the next big thing? We are just waiting for the scene where Tim and The Beard see the house in D.C. for the first time. Who will turn out to be the alcoholic in the house? Who will admit they are gay in the first 48 hours? Who is the house slut? Tell us, do!
Fed weighs news conferences in tranparency push [Reuters]
