Question

For this assignment, you will select an article from a print or online FAKE news source that addresses economic issues in an editorial fashion. Using the tools of analysis covered so far in this course, you should briefly (1-2 paragraphs) summarize the article, and then analyze and criticize the article. You must critique the article and not merely summarize it. Your paper should be well-written and should reflect your current knowledge of economic theory (as limited as it is). (Hint: A good starting point is to identify the assumptions of the author.)

Since this is a fake news assignment why do you think the article was believable? Are there clues in the article that the article might be FAKE news?

Please identify the article that was used

Answer 1

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2019/05/02/fake_news_the_post-trump_economic_disaster_140220.html

The above article is about how the media and the world of economics had said that Donald Trump's winning would bring doom to US economy and that a new series of recession would start once the business background president is at power. The article has compared Trump and Obama regime. It is said that when Barack Obama resided as the president of the USA, he could not manage a single GDP year with a target of 3% growth, while Donald Trump achieved a target of 3% growth.

It also said, that all those who were skeptical about what the Trump government would end up doing economically should now read the stats and satisfy their apprehensions. The author has quoted Economist Paul Krugman who had said that Trump is the man of all adverse decisions. This however according to the author was proved wrong at the end.

While the article is a clear gaga over the economic benefits of Trump, it did miss out some important critiques:

1) Stagnant growth: The US after the recession of 2008 had a good recovery through various fiscal and monetary as well as parliamentary reforms. However, once the growth came to a stand-still, it has not grown significantly according to data like that of satista.

2) Shutdown: The government shutdown which lasted over a year, adversely affected the market, which brought the aggregate demand of the US economy at an all-time low.

3) Trade wars: Slamming sanctions on giant manufacturers like China, is strictly against the basic theory of trade and advantage. It will result in higher wages and less efficient utilization of the resources. Also, trade with countries like India has been disturbed which might affect the trade balance of the US.

So while the article may sing the good songs regarding Trump government, it is not in line with the conditions of the world economy.