Though I can agree with those who say he sometimes goes too far with his bullying, Nassim Nicholas Taleb has worthwhile things to say that align with this. In

Though I can agree with those who say he sometimes goes too far with his bullying, Nassim Nicholas Taleb has worthwhile things to say that align with this. In the past journalism was an act of courage, revealing truths in the face of powerful establishments and risking jail or even death. Today (except in such repressive regimes as as Syria or Russia and except for war correspondents) it is becoming the refuge of disconnected cowards. In my entire career I have never seen a financial journalist go to "the other side", that is pull the trigger or engage in risk taking or in any situation in which one can be exposed to harm from one's opinion. This can be generalized to journalists in general, who rarely, if ever, switch to doing, all the while pontificating on "Steve Job's mistakes" or similar purported errors of others, or praising Geithner and other powerful frauds. Jazi Zilber wondered why journalists seemingly so knowledgeable about politics never become politicians. It is the same problem: modern journalists are designed to be either cowards, or have a need to escape reality. Yet the tragedy is that doers are in contact with the world through journalists. [1] In his podcast with James Altucher, he explains how he makes a point of taking a bit of time out each week to publicly troll egotistical journalists, because, hey, someone has to. [2] And though I don't have a citation, I recall one his tips for better living is to avoid spending time/brain cycles consuming mainstream news at all. If something is important enough that you must know about it, he argues, someone will tell you about it. [1] https://www.facebook.com/nntaleb/?target_post=10151318978788375&ref=story_permalink https://www.facebook.com/nntaleb/?target_post=10151318978788... [2] http://www.stansberryradio.com/Frank-Curzio/Latest-Episodes/Episode/727/Ep-45-Nassim-Taleb-Why-You-Should-Embrace-Uncertainty http://www.stansberryradio.com/Frank-Curzio/Latest-Episodes/...