Gene Epstein, an Austrian Economist,[1] is Barron's economics editor and writes the column Economic Beat.[2]
Earning a BA from Brandeis University and MA in economics from the New School, Gene Epstein taught economics at St. John’s University and the City University of New York, publishing Making Money in Commodities (1976).[3] Gene Epstein went on to work as a senior economist for the New York Stock Exchange[4] and with co-author William C. Freund published People and Productivity: The New York Stock Exchange Guide to Financial Incentives and the Quality of Work Life in 1984.[5]
In 1993 he became Barron's economics editor and columnist of Economic Beat. Since writing Econospinning (2006) Gene Epstein is a frequent speaker on the conference circuit and has appeared on NPR, CNBC, CNN, Fox, and BBC TV.[6]
Published in 2006, Gene Epstein critiques the media’s handling of economic news, detailing the errors of such politically divergent groups as the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, New York Review of Books, the New Yorker, and the Economist. Paul Krugman, Lou Dobbs, Brad DeLong, and Freakonomics writers Steven Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner are among some of the individuals singled out in Econospinning.
While garnishing some positive reviews[7] many of the major media outlets criticized have chosen to ignore the book.
When first published in 2006, controversy erupted in the blogosphere after Tyler Cowen mentioned the book in his blog Marginal Revolution.[8] Brad Delong's review[9] provoked Epstein to respond[10] on Luskin’s blog, igniting into an all out flamewar[11][12] and culminating with Gene Epstein launching of his own blog Econospinning.com[13] which fell out of use sometime in 2007.