Mortgage Giant Overstated the Size of Its Capital Base

New York Times by Gretchen Morgenson, Charles Duhigg | Sep. 7, 2008 (News Report)

The government's planned takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, expected to be announced on Sunday, came together after advisers poring over the companies' books for the Treasury Department concluded that Freddie's accounting methods had overstated its capital cushion, according to regulatory officials briefed on the matter.

The proposal to place both companies, which own or back $5.3 trillion in mortgages, into a government-run conservatorship ... Full Story »

Posted by Leo Romero

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Dwight Rousu
4.7
 by Dwight Rousu - Oct. 1, 2008

The subject is covered in more depth and balance than many of the other stories. The story omits much discussion of the motivation for the managers to push the limits of corporate greed, and also omits much discussion of the effects of the government failing to regulate the public business that they turned over to private greed motivation. The link to the scandals of Enron and others is mentioned, but not previous banking scandals such as Silverado. The effects upon other national treasuries is mentioned, but not the effect upon retirement portfolios of present and future retirees.

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Dwight's Rating

Overall
4.7

Very good
from 13 answers
Quality
4.7
Facts
5.0
Fairness
4.0
Information
5.0
Sourcing
4.0
Style
5.0
Accuracy
5.0
Balance
4.0
Context
5.0
Popularity
4.5
Recommendation
5.0
Credibility
4.0
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