Times Star Sorkin: Too Cozy With Wall Street?

Citigroup hasn't learned its lesson from financial crisis

(NEWSER) - Have the big banks learned their lesson from the financial crisis? Not a chance, writes Charlie Gasparino in the Daily Beast . Citigroup’s recent attempt to bar a well-respected financial analyst from questioning its executives about accounting practices, plus new documents proving the bank’s top brass knew about its massive risk-taking, all prove that this “behemoth” still holds “contempt for the needs of investors and the American taxpayer.” More»

Maybe all the profanity will keep you reading

(NEWSER) - There are so many books about the financial crisis, how does one choose which to read first? One method: Go for the one with the most instances of the word “fuck.” Conveniently enough, Paul Kedrosky has assembled a handy list. Not big on the idea of the f-word prominently featured in your bailout books? Don’t worry, the clean ones appear at the bottom of the list:

1. The Big Short by Michael Lewis: 15 total, .06 per page

Only a few outlets warned of subprime collapse

(NEWSER) - If the financial crisis shocked news readers—and it did—it must have surprised news writers as well, David Folkenflik reasons on NPR. He surveyed major US publications and, sure enough, found few warnings of financial doom pre-meltdown. A New York Times columnist explained it this way: "As long as the stock market is going up, people don't really pay attention to a lot of other things." More»

Paulson & Co. say cash was to 'facilitate orderly wind-down' of trades, but questions persist

(NEWSER) - After refusing to bail out Lehman Brothers, the Federal Reserve funneled $87 billion to a subsidiary through JPMorgan Chase on Sept. 15, then another $51 billion the next day. The feds say they aimed to “facilitate an orderly wind-down” of Lehman’s broker-dealer operations, Andrew Ross Sorkin writes in the New York Times, but their changing explanations, and other issues, continue to muddy the waters. More»

Matt Taibbi says bankers are still overpaid

(NEWSER) - Matt Taibbi was incredulous when he read a recent New York piece in which Wall Street denizens whined that Dodd-Frank was limiting their bonuses. "I watch what I spend," one banker lamented, "but my girlfriend likes to eat good food," which adds up fast. "Quelle horreur!" Taibbi quips in Rolling Stone , before shredding the argument. Actually, bank compensation is falling because of the European debt crisis. Bankers he knows are saying things like, "If the ECB doesn't come up with a Greek bailout package, I'm going to have to sell my children for dog food." And at some banks (like Goldman Sachs), bonuses are actually up relative to earnings. More»