CNBC Anchor's 'Gut Feeling' Says No Recession

     Talk about a contradiction.

     Maria Bartiromo, described by The Wall Street Journal as “the face of CNBC,” delivered a worried report about the U.S. economy and the possibility of recession on NBC’s “Today,” before stating that she thinks a recession will not happen.

     Talk about a contradiction.

     Maria Bartiromo, described by The Wall Street Journal as “the face of CNBC,” delivered a worried report about the U.S. economy and the possibility of recession on NBC’s “Today,” before stating that she thinks a recession will not happen.

     “Today” co-host Meredith Vieira asked Bartiromo on November 12 if she “believe[s] we are headed into a recession.”

     “You know Meredith, I do not,” Bartiromo said. “My gut feeling tells me that we have strength around the world. Economies like China and India and Europe continue to grow and that certainly helps American companies that have operations there. I think that that growth will probably offset the weakness that we’re seeing in housing and of course this pressure from oil.”

     But prior to Bartiromo’s optimistic comment, her report showcased some grim news about housing, oil and other concerns and included one expert warning about stagflation.

     “The risk going forward is what’s called stagflation, in which we have a weak economy, weak job market, elevated unemployment at the same time we have inflation,” said Edward Leamer, director of UCLA-Anderson Forecast.

     Leamer gave his dire warning despite the Labor Department reporting on November 2 166,000 new jobs created during the month of October and the Commerce Department reporting October 31 the gross domestic product growth was at 3.9 percent, with inflation remaining within its target range.

     Bartiromo also reported the findings of an NBC News/The Wall Street Journal Poll that said only 21 percent of Americans think the nation is headed in the right direction and 57 percent think it is headed in the wrong direction.

     Perhaps Americans are being influenced by the negativity of the news media which have talked about “recession” more than 100 times since August 2003, according to a Business & Media Institute analysis.

     Even CNN Business Correspondent Ali Velshi told viewers on the October 18 “American Morning” just talking about a recession could trigger a recession.

     “[A]nd talking about it [can trigger a recession],” Velshi said. “So, don’t listen to me – go spend whatever you were going to spend regardless of what I just said.”