Because they are so prevalent, few people realize the importance of free news media. The truth is that they form a vital part of any democratic society. Reporting the Facts This is its most basic role. It’s only natural for any government to look or report on only the bright side of things. The news organizations on the other hand, can state the facts. This role is critical to understanding events not just in your country but the world at large. An example would be economic news. While a government may report glowing figures, journalists perform man on the street interviews and stories. This gives you the chance to look at the entire picture. The importance of free news media can also be seen when reporting from various parts of the world. In countries where military juntas rule, people...

Whether you’re an employee or employ workers, you need to know why companies downsize. This knowledge can make the difference between recovering or going bankrupt. To Reduce Costs The primary reason is to keep the costs down. Business enterprises usually have long term forecasts. These are used to make decisions in the present. If the forecast is that it will lose money, cutting jobs or shutting down factories may be the only option. Sometimes this takes place without the result of a long term study. An unexpected event like an economic crisis can happen. In this situation, the corporation may be forced to make mass layoffs. This is one reason why companies downsize. To be More Profitable In some cases a firm might decide to do it to make more money. It can happen that a company expands...

The unraveling of Ford, General Motors and Chrysler have become lessons in how not to manage a company. Although the situation for each corporation is different, here are some of the shared reasons why car sales statistics are falling and the big 3 US automakers are losing money. High Labor Costs Chief among them are the labor laws and costs. The three companies all have powerful unions and they have exercised great power during negotiations. As such, workers for Ford, GM and Chrysler make more dollars per hour than in most other companies. In addition they also have extensive health coverage. It’s been estimated that GM spends over $1,600 per vehicle on health care alone. It is also worth pointing out that GM has an extensive retirement program. What this means is that the retirement...

One of the most successful natural gas merchants in North America, Enron Creditors Recovery Corporation was established by Kenneth Lay in 1985 from the merger of big natural gas pipeline firms InterNorth and Houston Natural Gas. The approval of legislation in the U.S. concerning the deregulation of natural gas sale is one of the events that affected the outstanding financial performance of the company in the 1990s. The development of the online business model known as EnronOnline also contributed to the popularity of the company in November 1999. However, stockholders were alarmed by the sudden decision of the firm to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December 2001. History of the Company Why did Enron go bankrupt? There are several reasons for the bankruptcy of the firm. One of...

Because it’s such a valuable resource, consumers have the right to know why gas is so expensive. There isn’t a single cause though. There are actually several explanations. Demands by Growing Economies The emerging economies of China and India are partly responsible for the increase in oil costs. Statistics show that every year more people there are purchasing cars. This increases the demand in those countries. What happens is that the supply of oil is stretched out. This naturally increases the costs. This doesn’t just apply to China or India. Whenever the world economy is up, the need for oil increases. This is just part of the natural law of supply and demand. So it would be correct to say that emerging economies are reasons why gas is so expensive. Seasonal Demand The weather also...