Over here in the States there’s blanket coverage of the financial crisis interspersed with the impending presidential election.  The Dow fell yesterday (Friday) another 3.6% bringing this week’s losses to $800 billion.  CNN reminded us that Friday was the anniversary of the day that the markets started to crash in 1929 leading to the Great Depression.

Looking at the BBC website there’s wall to wall coverage of the crisis too.  But hold on, what’s this? No longer is it a crisis, now apparently it’s a downturn, furnished with its own new logo.

Matthew Parris of the Times predicted this last Thursday:

“Crisis? What crisis? … From tomorrow there is to be a corporation-wide ban on broadcast references to any 'economic crisis' when discussing what our Government might prefer to call the 'global financial challenge'.  In place of 'crisis' BBC staff have apparently been instructed to say 'downturn' …. Friday is D (for Downturn) Day in corporation-speak.”

So the BBC is moderating its language, no doubt under pressure from the Government.  But it’s not moderating it’s almost hysterical coverage of which this live football style reporting of Friday’s events is just one example.

I can’t help thinking that we’re talking ourselves deeper and deeper into this ‘downturn’.  The media will always sensationalise coverage in a bid to gain reader / viewer attention.  You could argue that it's their job to do so.  That’s one thing when it concerns a celebrity’s troubled life, but quite another when the consequences can be so serious for us all.  Fear is gripping the financial markets, and now fear is gripping the consumer.  There’s an element of the chicken and egg syndrome here admittedly, but at some point we need to get more balance in the coverage.  See Richard Bennett’s post on recent events surrounding our client HBOS which back's this up too.

It’s not just Metrica thinking this.  All of the most recommended reader feedback comments on the BBC’s own site agree.  It makes very interesting reading.