Delivered by Elisabeth DeMarse, Chairman, CEO and President,
TheStreet, Inc. at 39th anniversary celebration of the KnightBagehot Fellowship on November 3, 2014
THANK YOU, JIM CRAMER, FOR A VERY KIND
INTRODUCTION. THANK YOU AGAIN TO BOB GREIFELD
OF NASDAQ, PAUL MCCULLY OF PIMCO AND PAUL
TAYLOR OF FITCH FOR CO-CHAIRING THIS DINNER.
BEFORE I BEGIN, COULD WE HAVE A MOMENT OF
SILENCE FOR TERRY KEENAN, WHOM MANY OF US
KNEW AND APPRECIATED.
IT IS A COMPLETE PRIVILEGE TO JOIN YOU TO
CELEBRATE THE SUCCESS OF THE KNIGHT-BAGEHOT
FELLOWSHIP. I AM SO HAPPY TO SEE SO MANY OLD
FRIENDS HERE TONIGHT. AND HONORED TO BE IN THE
COMPANY OF SO MANY PEOPLE I ADMIRE
ENORMOUSLY. MY CONNECTION TO THE FELLOWSHIP
GOES BACK TO BLOOMBERG DAYS WHEN MATT
WINKLER FOUNDED BLOOMBERG NEWS. MATT, YOU
ARE THE ONLY PERSON I’VE EVER KNOWN WHOSE
VISION OUTSTRIPPED MIKE BLOOMBERG’S.
ORIGINALLY, MIKE WANTED 15 PEOPLE IN PRINCETON
NEW JERSEY TO RIP AND REWRITE PRNEWSWIRE AND
BUSINESS WIRE. BUT MATT KEPT HIRING AND HIRING,
IGNORING MIKE’S GROWLS AND THREATS. MATT WAS
32 YEARS OLD, AND HE WAS A MAN ON A MISSION. I
WATCHED AND LEARNED AND MIKE NOT VERY
SECRETLY LOVED THE FACT THAT MATT WAS
INDEFATIGABLE. AMONG MY MANY DUTIES AT THAT
TIME WAS MIKE’S PHILANTHROPY. THROUGH MATT’S
INITIATIVE, BLOOMBERG BEGAN SUPPORTING THE
KNIGHT BAGEHOT PROGRAM. SO TWENTY FIVE YEARS
LATER, IT’S REALLY SO COOL TO HAVE THE CHANCE TO
BE HERE TONIGHT, AND I THANK THE COMMITTEE
FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART.
NOW TO ADDRESS THE STATED TOPIC IS DIGITAL
CHANGING JOURNALISM?
THE SHORT ANSWER AND THE LONG ANSWER IS “NO”.
EVERY MORNING YOU STILL HAVE TO WAKE UP AND
MAKE THE DONUTS. YOU HAVE TO DO THE WORK, AND
THE WORK HASN’T CHANGED IN DECADES. ESPECIALLY
WHEN IT COMES TO COVERING BUSINESS AND
FINANCE. FRANKLY, I CANT IMPROVE ON THE EXCITING
AND BULLISH SPEECH GILLIAN TETT MADE TWO YEARS
AGO ABOUT THE CONTINUED HEALTH OF BUSINESS
JOURNALISM, AND BUSINESS JOURNALISM IN THE
DIGITAL AGE.
BUSINESS NEWS IS IN GOOD SHAPE, IS GOING TO BE IN
GOOD SHAPE, AND IS GROWING. THERE’S A DARWINIAN
BEAUTY TO BUSINESS NEWS, WHICH IS IF YOU HELP
PEOPLE MAKE MONEY, THEY WILL PAY YOU FOR IT. IF
YOU HELP PEOPLE MAKE MONEY, THEY WILL PAY YOU
FOR IT. FOR EXAMPLE, WE OWN THE DEAL, WHICH IS
THE NUMBER ONE NEWS AND INFORMATION SOURCE
FOR MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS….. BESIDES
BLOOMBERG …..AND REUTERS…. AND DEALBOOK.
ITS LIKE LAKE WOBEGONE, THOSE OF US IN THE M+A
RACKET ARE ALL NUMBER ONE.
WE SELL THE DEAL ON AN ENTERPRISE BASIS TO
PROFESSIONAL SERVICE FIRMS. OUR REPORTERS ARE
ROCKSTARS. HOW DO I KNOW THIS? BECAUSE
BLOOMBERG KEEPS TRYING TO HIRE THEM, AND I
HAVE TO COUNTER…. AH SUPPLY AND DEMAND.
THAT’S WHAT MAKES A MARKET.
SO BUSINESS JOURNALISM. WHAT IS IT? I GREW UP IN
THE ERA OF JAMES MICHAELS, THE LEGENDARY
EDITOR OF FORBES. JAMES MICHAELS DEFINED YOUR
JOB AS “TO BE THE DRAMA CRITIC OF BUSINESS.” HIS
COMPLETE PHRASEOLOGY WAS “OH! THE WONDER OF
IT, OH! THE PITY OF IT—TO BE THE DRAMA CRITIC OF
BUSINESS.” TO TELL THE STORIES OF MONEY WITH
FLAIR AND STYLE. THANKFULLY, THAT HAS NOT
CHANGED.
IN BUSINESS AND FINANCE, YOU START WITH WORLD
EVENTS, WAR AND PEACE, WHICH DICTATE THE
LARGEST, MOST LIQUID MARKET, THE $5 TO $10
TRILLION DOLLARS PER DAY FLOWING THROUGH THE
UNREGULATED CURRENCY MARKETS, 85% DOLLAR
DENOMINATED. TO ME, THE FX MARKET IS THE MOST
EXCITING MARKET OF ALL.
NEXT YOU HAVE TO THE DISMAL SCIENCE OF
ECONOMICS, DICTATING CENTRAL BANK POLICY AND
FIXED INCOME TRADING. $93 TRILLION IN ASSETS
TRADING $830 BILLION PER DAY. THE CONSEQUENCE
OF FISCAL AND MONETARY POLICY. DRY STUFF,
UNLESS YOU ARE FELIX SALMON IN DRAMA CRITIC
MODE. OR PAUL MCCULLY OF PIMCO. OH! THE WONDER
OF IT, OH! THE PITY OF IT.
AND AT A FRACTION OF THESE TWO MARKETS, WE
HAVE THE EQUITY MARKETS, HALF THE MARKET
VALUE OF THE FIXED INCOME MARKETS. DESPITE THE
MUCH LARGER SIZE OF BOTH THE CURRENCY AND
BOND MARKET, THE PUBLIC AND NEWS MEDIA FOCUS
ON THE UPS AND DOWNS OF THE STOCK MARKET. THE
BUSINESS OF COVERING COMPANIES AND STOCKS IS A
LARGE BUSINESS, IN ITSELF, A VERY LARGE BUSINESS.
MUTUAL FUND MANAGERS AND BROKERAGES SPEND
FANTASTICAL RESOURCES TRYING TO PERSUADE
RETAIL INVESTORS TO INVEST IN THE STOCK MARKET.
THE VITALITY OF THE STOCK MARKET IS AN
ENORMOUS REFLECTION OF THE PUBLIC’S FAITH IN
OUR SYSTEM OF FREE ENTERPRISE.
MONEY FLOWS ASIDE, FOR MOST OF AMERICA, STOCK
PRICES ARE VIEWED AS LEADING INDICATORS OF
CORPORATIONS’ FUTURE SUCCESS AS WELL AS
EXPECTATIONS OF ECONOMIC GROWTH. IT’S A
GESTALT SIGNAL TO OUR WELL-BEING. THE EQUITY
MARKETS IMPORTANT FOR THAT REASON ALONE.
IF THE JOB IS TO BE THE DRAMA CRITIC, THEN JIM
CRAMER IS PAULINE KAEL. NOT ONLY IS JIM ONE OF
THE VERY BEST, ACCESSIBLE AND ENTERTAINING
WRITERS ABOUT COMPANIES, BUT JIM’S KNOWLEDGE
IS ENCYLOPEDIC. BECAUSE OF JIM’S DEEP KNOWLEDGE
OF AND PERSPECTIVE ON, THE HISTORY OF COMPANIES,
NO ONE IS MORE INSIGHTFUL ABOUT CORPORATE
LEADERSHIP.
IF JIM CRAMER IS PAULINE KAEL, THEN MICHAEL
WOLFF IS CLIVE BARNES. MEN FEAR HIM AND WOMEN
ADORE HIM. ACTULLAY WOMEN FEAR HIM, ALSO. “OH!
THE WONDER OF IT! OH! THE PITY OF IT!”
I MEET WITH MANY REPORTERS, AND MANY TIMES THE
PERSON SAYS, “I JUST WANT TO REPORT THE NEWS; MY
JOB IS TO JUST GIVE THE FACTS, NOT EXPLAIN IT OR
GIVE MY PERSPECTIVE.” WELL, OF COURSE EVERY
GREAT JOURNALIST FIRST GATHERS THE FACTS. BUT
AMERICANS NEED AND WANT PERSPECTIVE. AMERICA
NEEDS JAMES MICHAELS’ FLAIR AND STYLE TO MAKE
BUSINESS AND STOCKS RELEVANT, ACCESSIBLE AND
INTERESTING. I TELL THESE YOUNG REPORTERS, WHO
JUST WANT TO REPORT, THE DAYS OF TEPID, OVERLY
NEUTRAL REPORTING ARE OVER, AND THAT AS I
LEARNED FROM NIK DEOGUN, IN ADDITION TO NEWS
JUDGMENT, YOU HAVE TO HAVE SOMETHING TO
SAY. YOU HAVE TO HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY.
IS DIGITAL CHANGING JOURNALISM? ONLY AROUND
THE EDGES. TODAY OUR JOURNALISTS AT THESTREET,
THE DEAL, AND MAINSTREET MUST BE COMFORTABLE
WITH VIDEO, WITH SOCIAL MEDIA, AND
INCORPORATING SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION AS
WELL AS WRITING. THEY NEED TO BE NINJAS AT EXCEL
AND KNOW THEIR WAY AROUND A PIVOT TABLE.
DIGITAL JOURNALISM IS NOT FOR EVERYONE. IT’S
VERY DIFFERENT FROM THE MEME OF A JOURNALIST
WHO IS BURIED SOMEWHERE OFF WRITING IN A KIND
OF A VACUUM. IN TERMS OF HIRING CRITERIA, IT'S A
NEW WORLD.
HAVE I GOTTEN PUSHBACK FROM FOLKS ABOUT OUR
EXPECTATION THAT THEY DO VIDEOS, RADIO
INTERVIEWS, LISTCICLES AND GUEST APPEARANCES IN
ADDITION TO GENERATING GREAT ENTERPRISE STORIES
AND PAGEVIEWS? SURE, BUT MOST OF OUR NEWS
FLOOR HAS EMBRACED THESE OPPORTUNITIES. WE
EXPECT EVERYONE TO BE COMFORTABLE WITH DATA
AND TAKE AN ANALYTICAL APPROACH TO THEIR WORK.
WE PAY FOR OUR JOURNALISTS TO BECOME CERTIFIED
IN GOOGLE ANALYTICS AND OTHER IMPORTANT TOOLS.
THE VAST MAJORITY OF OUR JOURNALISTS HAVE REALLY
STEPPED UP TO GETTING OUT OF THEIR COMFORT
ZONE. WE LOOK FOR A MIX OF NEWS JUDGMENT AND
DIGITAL CHOPS. PEOPLE WHO HAVE A SENSE OF WHAT
WORKS WELL ON THE WEB AS WELL AS STRONG
JOURNALISTIC EXPERTISE.
LET ME END NOW WITH SOMETHING SURPRISING. IF
DIGITAL ISN’T REALLY CHANGING JOURNALISM, THEN
BOOKS ARE NOT OBSELETE. BOOKS CHANGE
THINGS. BOOKS CHANGE THINGS, TO THIS DAY, IN
WAYS THAT NO OTHER MEDIUM DOES. SO WRITE A
BOOK. BUT TO WRITE A BOOK, AS NIK DEOGUN SAYS,
YOU HAVE TO HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY. YOU HAVE
TO BE A DRAMA CRITIC.
NOW BEFORE CLOSING, I WANT TO BRIEFLY MENTION
SOMETHING THAT HAS NEVER BEFORE BEEN
ADDRESSED AT THIS DINNER WHICH IS THE ISSUE OF
DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION IN NEWSROOMS. WHEN I
LOOK OUT AT THIS AUDIENCE, I SEE SO MUCH
EXTRAORDINARY POTENTIAL. SOMETHING FANTASTIC
IS HAPPENING EVERY DAY HERE AT THE J SCHOOL. THE
AUTHENTICITY OF THESE FELLOWS AND THESE
STUDENTS IS PALPABLE. J SCHOOL GRADUATES ARE
TRAINED PROFESSIONALS WHO ARE EMOTIONALLY
READY TO COMPETE AND SUCCEED.
TODAY, JOURNALISM SCHOOLS ARE OVER 70% FEMALE
AND COLUMBIA’S MS PROGRAM 76% FEMALE. YET WE
ARE HOPELESSLY OUT OF SYNCH. NEWSROOMS LINGER
AT 40% FEMALE. SO COLUMBIA J SCHOOL IS DOING ITS
BIT—IT’S MANUFACTURING A TRAINED,
CREDENTIALED PIPELINE OF FEMALE TALENT. BUT WE
ARE OUT OF SYNCH. THERE IS A GAP IS IN HIRING AND
PROMOTION. THERE IS A GAP IS IN GIVING WOMEN AND
MINORITIES A FAIR CHANCE.
NOW, LETS DICUSS THE PEOPLE BUSINESS
JOURNALISTS ARE INTERVIEWING. ELITE BUSINESS
SCHOOLS ARE 35% FEMALE. MANY PEOPLE DO NOT
KNOW THAT—THE ASSUMPTION IS THAT HALF OF THE
CLASS AT HBS AND STANFORD AND WHARTON IS
FEMALE. BUT THAT’S NOT THE CASE. IMAGINE
THAT. IT’S 2014, AND THE PIPELINE FOR FEMALE
LEADERS IN BUSINESS IS HALF OF JOURNALISM. HEY
GANG, THIS IS SIMPLY NOT ACCEPTABLE, AND WE
KNOW WE CAN DO BETTER. IT IS UP TO US TO WORK
TOGETHER TO BRING TALENTED YOUNG WOMEN AND
MINORITIES UP THE RANKS.
BUT IT’S NOT SURPRISING WHEN NATE SILVER CAN SAY
“CLUBHOUSE CHEMISTRY IS IMPORTANT.” I LOVE THE
GUY, I RESPECT THE GUY, I DEVOUR EVERY WORD. BUT
THOSE TWO WORDS—CLUBHOUSE AND CHEMISTRY-GIVE PERMISSION TO NEWSROOMS AND BUSINESSES
EVERYWHERE TO HIRE AND FIRE IN THEIR OWN
IMAGE.
IT’S CALLED HOMOPHILY, AND IT’S THE BIRDS OF A
FEATHER SYNDROME, THE INEXORABLE TENDENCY TO
BOND WITH SIMILAR PEOPLE. BUT YOUNG PEOPLE
TODAY ARE SO COLOR BLIND AND GENDER BLIND AND
SEXUAL PREFERENCE BLIND ITS FANTASTIC. HOORAY!
THEY REALLY DON’T CARE. TO THE YOUNG MEN IN
THIS ROOM, PLEASE CONTINUE TO BE SEX-BLIND AND
COLOR BLIND. PLEASE BE LEADERS, PLEASE HIRE AND
HELP AND LIFT A HAND OUTSIDE OF YOUR IMAGE,
OUTSIDE OF A NARROW IDEA OF CLUBHOUSE
CHEMISTRY. AFTER ALL, ISN’T JOURNALISM ABOUT
FAIRNESS AND OBJECTIVITY?
IF WE ASPIRE TO ACHIEVE GENDER BALANCED
LEADERSHIP, WE NEED MALE ADVOCACY,
COMMITMENT, AND ACTION. GIVING YOUR FEMALE
AND MINORITY COLLEAGUES THE OPPORTUNITY TO
DEVELOP INTO SUCCESSFUL, ETHICAL LEADERS
REQUIRES A LOT OF SUPPORT. GANG, IT’S NOT
HAPPENING OTHERWISE. IT’S NOT HAPPENING BY
ITSELF. SO I’D LIKE TO ASK THE YOUNG MEN IN THE
ROOM TO PLEASE BE PART OF THE SOLUTION. PLEASE
TAKE ON THE OBLIGATION TO MAKE THIS WORLD A
PLACE WHERE WOMEN AND MINORITIES NEVER
EXPERIENCE LIMITS BASED ON THEIR RACE OR
GENDER.
CAPITALISM AND DEMOCRACY, IN COMBINATION, IS
THE GREATEST SYSTEM IN THE WORLD. IT IS CRITICAL
THAT WE ACTIVELY SUPPORT OUR DEMOCRATIC
PRINCIPLES OF FAIRNESS AND OPPORTUNITY AND
SUPPORT GENDER PARITY AND DIVERSITY.
IN SUPPORT OF OUR GREAT DEMOCRACY, DON’T
FORGET TO VOTE TOMORROW. THANK YOU VERY
MUCH.