Why is the media pushing "a big drop in oil prices?" MSNBC has

[Skidmore]

had this story on a few times this morning. Who's up to what?

[meegbear]

1. Need a story, so hype it up ...

last week here in Massachusetts, they were reporting that gas prices dropped "almost a penny". :wtf:

[Dawgs]

2. Actually, in the Atlanta area I saw it drop to about $2.90, where last week it was at $3.23.

[annabanana]

3. It's the framing of the drop that I find interesting... very different

Haven't ALL the drops in the past also been due to increased foreign supply?
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=1086718&mesg_id=1086718

[Skidmore]

4. Yup. Something's afoot.

And it stinks.

[KharmaTrain]

5. Maybe Because It's Real News????

In my area, cars are life...and the price of gas is topic number one with most people I run into. The run-up in prices hit many of my friends and neighbors hard...$40 to $50 fill-ups...nearly doubling what most of us were paying a year or two ago. And none of our incomes are increasing at that clip. A 25-50 cent drop is a big deal. It means a couple extra bucks to throw at the rising grocery prices or nut away until the next run-up on electric or heating/cooling rats kick in.

I'd rather hear more about what cause this price run-up...and the mess that created the high prices rather than another Paris Hilton story.

[sendero]

6. Since when did the price of gasoline..

... have much to do with the price of oil?

[KharmaTrain]

8. It Means More Money At The End Of The Month For Some...

Do most people truly understand how the economy works? Surely corporate media isn't going to explain it.

But any news of a drop in energy prices...is big news be it now or 3 months down the road. The prices are still too high, but a 10 percent drop these days can mean $50 or $100 or more extra dollars at the end of the month. If not now, hopefully down the road.

I know of some who have cancelled summer vacation plans already as the price of gasoline cut into both their budgets and will make getting anywhere this summer difficult.

And how would you frame this issue...or what is more newsworthy? Just curious...

[annabanana]

9. I'm not looking for a "frame".. I'm just wondering why this particular

little price drop is receiving a different frame than all the previous ones. They are usually reported as being "a little relief for drivers as we approach the Father's Day weekend". This time, the second sentence out of the bobbleheads mouths is "This might not be the good news that it seems".

This to me is a striking difference.

[KharmaTrain]

16. I Think It's Cause The Prices Have Been So High For So Long

I'm as suspect of the corporate media as anyone here on DU...but I think this is actual news someone could use as the prices have been so high for so long.

There's a real cynicism about gas and oil prices out there...and for damn good reason. Oil and gas prices affect virtually every part of the economy...if not what you're putting in your tank now, in what you'll pay for anything that relies on transportation to get to market.

My son drives 50 miles each weekday to school. There's no public transit, thus a drop of 25 cents a gallon means a lot to him...he might be able to afford a date this weekend.

Cheers...

[blondeatlast]

11. Basic economics should be taught at least in 6th grade. My kid has

a reasonable grasp of macroeconomics and he's in 5th grade. It can be done, but it'll upset the NCLB crowd .

[sendero]

14. I think there is a misunderstanding..

... the OP talks about the price of OIL. The price of OIL is only tangentially related to the price we pay for gasoline.

You don't have to sell me on the importance of the price of gasoline. It has depressed retail sales a lot and if it doesn't moderate in a substantial way and soon, it is going to be another straw on the camel's back that is the US economy.

[KharmaTrain]

18. Yes, It's All Very Muddled

I think it's a pavolian reaction that people identify the price of oil and the price of gas as being synonymous. But any drop in energy prices is a good thing...not just for gasoline, but for the economy in general as, at least for now, prices won't be continue to rise.

This economy is in a shambles...with the rising price of oil/energy coupled with the growing debt (going to Iraq) and defecits starting to fuel inflation in a way like we haven't seen since the 70's...when another oil price run up and defecit from another disastrous war created the inflation Carter got tagged for.

Ironically, I can see some investors being upset...a drop in their Exxon/Mobil stocks mean they may have to sell the yacht. :sarcasm:

Cheers...

[fed-up]

19. BINGO-this is to encourage summer travel, evidently too many vacations cancelled nt

[Ilsa]

7. Is there an election coming up next week? That's the only reason I've seen

for a drop in prices and promotion of gas sales by MSM.

[annabanana]

12. Not a big one...

Maybe they are going to try to use a drop in oil prices to ratchet up the fear factor (oooo foreigner's oil)

[MadHound]

10. To give us all a warm and fuzzy feeling of relief

When the price finally bottoms out at $2.50/gal., even though that is fifty cents higher than the bottom six months ago. Hoping that we'll all be so relieved that we'll keep buying up that gas at a high rate of consumption.

[blondeatlast]

13. Perhaps the latest consumer price index is bad news?

You know it, I know it, and virtually every American that isn't serving the Bush cabal knows it (and the media serves them), but the economy is increasingly sucky.

[gravity]

15. Because the price of oil dropped over 3% in one day

[dysfunctional press]

17. gas prices went down over 10% around here...

i filled up at $3.49, two days later it was $3.09.