When It Comes to Investing, Should You Ignore the Media?

investing news media

Should you ignore the media?

By media I mean television, radio, magazines, newspapers and internet news, and financial analysts. When it comes to investing your hard earned money, the answer is “yes”! If you want to invest successfully you need to learn to ignore the media, there is just too much noise out there. You have to understand that the media exists to make money for themselves first and foremost. Just like any corporation they exist to generate profits, and they do this by selling advertising space in print, and selling airtime on television and radio.

Unfortunately in the world we live in bad news sells papers, and increases viewership. Here are some recent headlines:

“Homes Becoming Less Affordable for the Masses”
“Looming spending cuts hit more than defense”
“Small business owners more pessimistic in July”
“German investor optimism drops unexpectedly”
“France sees zero economic growth in Q2”
“NYSE stocks posting largest volume decreases”
“Europe edges closer to recession as economy shrinks 0.2%”
“Greek Recession Making Bailout Targets harder to Meet”
“Stocks fall as economic malaise reaches Japan”

Reading those headlines would make you think the world is coming to an end. Reading those headlines will want to make you put all your savings under a mattress. How much will you earn by keeping your money under a mattress? If you want to read the news, that’s fine, just take it with a grain of salt and don’t let it influence your investing goals.

“A public-opinion poll is no substitute for thought.” -Warren Buffett

When it comes to your money and investing, it is easy to get emotional. Surrounding yourself with negative news will influence your investing style. If you panic you will sell when stock prices are low, and this is exactly the wrong time to sell. The solution is simple: ignore the media, ignore the noise. Educate yourself on how to invest responsibly, how to minimize your risk, and how to maximize your returns.  Do not jump from one investing strategy to the next, and in the long run you will do very well for yourself.

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4 comments

Ken Faulkenberry - AAAMP Blog
 

I enjoy the saying "Don't bet on the end of the world, it only happens once". Your right, education is the key. Listening to the media will mess with ones head and emotions in a destructive way.

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Jeremy @ Modest Money
 

I don't know if I would be able to outright ignore the media. I would try to be less emotional with my investing decisions though. There would definitely be some value in knowing what's going on that might be affecting other people's decisions. You just have to remember that the market has a long history of always rebounding after any recessions.

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Kanwal Sarai
 

Thanks for visiting Ken, and Jeremy!
Education and keeping you emotions in check are extremely important when it comes to investing.

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Stock Admin
 

Agree that the media hype and opinions are just that (whatever they are speaking about be it finance, sport, politics). Particularly like the statement "ignore the media, ignore the noise. Educate yourself on how to invest responsibly" - refreshing words indeed.

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