Say Hello To The Fiscal Times

First, full disclosure: I write for The Fiscal Times' blog, "The Capital Exchange." Another CG&G person -- Ed Andrews -- will be providing full stories.

Second, The Fiscal Times, a website (it calls itself a "digital news, opinion and media service") devoted to all things fiscal launched this week.

TFT began with a great deal of controversy because it's initial funding comes from the Peter Peterson Foundation.  That led Dean Baker and others to conclude that the material it publishes and the opinions expressed had to be in line with what Peterson wants.  Dean was particularly critical of The Washington Post using TFT-provided content because, he said, the Peterson connection meant it was tainted.  That made the story the Post ran more of an op-ed than a news piece, he said and, at the very least, the Peterson connection should have been disclosed.  The Post responded here.

At least as far as I can tell, TFT is going to try to be a legitimate and unbiased fiscal news reporting organization.  The reporters on the team all have outstanding reputations for objective writing.  More important, those that I know would sooner sell apples on the street corner than have their integrity questioned by writing for a biased source.

In addition, I can say from personal experience that in the two blogs posts I've done for TFT (one already published; the other submitted about 20 minutes ago), as well as the organizational meetings, e-mails, and phone calls I've had with the editor and publisher, no one has ever told me what to write or what position to take.

TFT doesn't deserve a free pass; it will have to prove that it actually will be the independent and unbiased source of news, information, and opinion on fiscal issues it claims it's going to be.

If it is, TFT has the potential to be a very valuable addition to the discussion.