With Consumers in Mind

Consumer reporting had its heyday a few decades back but good business reporters know it's still a field that connects directly with readers. Here's a round of stories in The Denver Post, the Portland (Maine) Press Herald and Chicago Tribune that spotted trends of consumer interest.

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3 Dealing with underwater mortgages
Aldo Svaldi of The Denver Post
Svaldi reports that owners of at least a third of the houses bought in the Denver region in the last five years owe more on their homes than the homes are worth. He explains how people with such "underwater mortgages" feel trapped by their limited options. The story is relatively brief, but provides examples of how homeowners can get out from under their burden. Also praiseworthy, a map showing underwater mortgages by zip code. It appears this story could be done anywhere in the country by going to the same source Svaldi used.

2 Dealers scramble as car lenders leave
Tux Turkel of the Portland Press Herald
Many banks in Maine are refusing to offer loans to car buyers, sending dealers scrambling to arrange loans for their customers. Turkel reports that dealers are turning to credit unions, in-house financing and help from the automakers. Note how Turkel deftly turns from defining the sky-is-falling problem to the ways that creative buyers and lenders are dealing with it.

1Children at risk in food roulette
Sam Roe of the Chicago Tribune
Roe found after a thorough investigation that companies are mislabeling an alarming number of foods, putting children with allergies at risk. Even foods labeled as allergen-free contained allergens. The story begins in a straightforward and alarming fashion that concisely ticks off the findings. But it becomes even more compelling as Roe weaves in the experiences of families and children affected. Terrific work.

Copyright © 2008 Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism