View all newsletters
Sign up for our free email newsletters

Fighting for quality news media in the digital age.

  1. Media Business
October 1, 2008

Journalists ‘lack basic numeracy skills needed to report on business’

By Paul McNally

Too many journalists lack the basic numeracy skills required to report on business and the economy, according to a group of senior broadcasters, financial experts and journalism tutors gathered at a Radio Academy debate in London last night.

Jan Whyatt, a radio journalism tutor at the University of Westminster, called for a compulsory numeracy exam for all journalism students – and argued that financial training should be as important as media law in any journalism course.

“In my experience, a lot of journalists are not all that numerate. They don’t really feel comfortable with financial news,” she said. “The people who recognise and accredit journalism training should strongly consider making it an absolute requirement to pass an exam demonstrating numeracy.”

Personal finance journalist Jasmine Birtles, who runs the website moneymagpie.com, said she was surprised that even some of the most senior journalists who approached her for a quote did not seem to understand the issues.

“A lot of journalists do ask the most basic questions – but then so does everyone else. I’m constantly amazed at what they don’t know,” she said.

Her comments were echoed by the director of propertyfinder.com, Nicholas Leeming, who said he often had to tell journalists what questions they should be asking him, because “frequently they haven’t got a clue”.

The BBC’s acting economics editor, Hugh Pym, said his predecessor Evan Davis had been vocal about the lack of business knowledge among some journalists.

Content from our partners
MHP Group's 30 To Watch awards for young journalists open for entries
How PA Media is helping newspapers make the digital transition
Publishing on the open web is broken, how generative AI could help fix it

“[He] can’t understand why people are quite happy to admit they know nothing about business, as if it’s cool,” Pym said. “I admit there should be much more financial knowledge across the field.”

But Pym said he believed that journalists should not have to undergo the same training required to become an independent financial advisor – and said it was ultimately up to the audience to make their own decisions based on the information they receive.

“You don’t need to be trained as an IFA to present what’s happening in the markets in an entertaining and factual way,” he said. “It’s a free market of information. It’s up to them to decide how they process it.”

Bloomberg journalist Sarah Lowther, who was in the audience, said reporters had a responsibility to be careful when reporting on stories which, if handled wrongly, could affect share prices and markets.

“We’re not allowed to go on air until we’ve been trained in currencies, derivatives and bonds so that we don’t patronise our main audience,” she said.

“What we pride ourselves on is being incredibly dull. We just give the facts. As journalists we’re not allowed to use adjectives at all – the colour comes from the soundbites and we have to be really careful.”

Topics in this article :

Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog

Select and enter your email address Weekly insight into the big strategic issues affecting the future of the news industry. Essential reading for media leaders every Thursday. Your morning brew of news about the world of news from Press Gazette and elsewhere in the media. Sent at around 10am UK time. Our weekly does of strategic insight about the future of news media aimed at US readers. A fortnightly update from the front-line of news and advertising. Aimed at marketers and those involved in the advertising industry.
  • Business owner/co-owner
  • CEO
  • COO
  • CFO
  • CTO
  • Chairperson
  • Non-Exec Director
  • Other C-Suite
  • Managing Director
  • President/Partner
  • Senior Executive/SVP or Corporate VP or equivalent
  • Director or equivalent
  • Group or Senior Manager
  • Head of Department/Function
  • Manager
  • Non-manager
  • Retired
  • Other
Visit our privacy Policy for more information about our services, how New Statesman Media Group may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
Thank you

Thanks for subscribing.

Websites in our network