Beware the 'Experts'

(NEWSER) - Socrates and his ilk were deep thinkers, but modern-day pundits had better look good, think in sound bites, and be ready to spend $7,500 per day in training to get on TV, CBS News reports. "We coach people to look their best and sound their best any time they're on TV," says TJ Walker, pundit trainer. His keys to success: Don't look up, don't lean back, and never say something as if it's just your opinion. More»

Jonathan Krohn thinks most of his pundit peers act like kids

(NEWSER) - Jonathan Krohn has appeared on Fox News, written a bestselling book, and calls Newt Gingrich a “good friend.” He’s also 14. But when Samuel Jacobs of the Daily Beast sat down with Krohn, he found someone who considers himself not a prodigy, but a pundit more serious than many in the right-wing media. “Sean Hannity is a very angry guy,” he says. More»

Boycott may go beyond Fox host to other 'inflammatory' shows

(NEWSER) - Glenn Beck’s antics could just kill the entire political talk show genre, Advertising Age reports. Beck will return to the air tonight 33 advertisers lighter, after calling President Obama a “racist." But the fallout could spread to other talk shows, too—Clorox has already announced it’s pulling its ads from all political gabfests, because of their “sometimes inflammatory nature.” More»

(NEWSER) - He may have gotten only a B in economics, but James Rainey, in the Los Angeles Times, says he can be the next CNBC personality. “There’s got to be a spot for me on one of those chatter fests,” he says, because “I’ve out-performed the Dow by more than 100%!” His secret: He sold his stocks and put the proceeds into money markets and bonds. More»

Pundits should hedge their bets and speak with caution

(NEWSER) - Financial pundits don’t know everything, and don't trust those who act like they do, Joel Lovell writes in the Washington Post. The GQ money expert acknowledges anxiety over dispensing information that may not be true at all. “It makes me feel like a bit of a fraud,” Lovell confesses. How should Americans spend their money? “Beats me,” he says. More»