As a personal finance author and advocate, I do my best to create useful content based on unbiased information. I’m able to do this because I don’t take compensation to promote products and services offered by others so I’m free to “tell it like it is.” A benefit of being financially independent.
A financial services company or advisor that advertises or sells specific investments or brands, may have an inherent bias and conflict of interest. In other words, if an advisor is compensated to push specific products or services, then they are biased. This doesn’t necessarily mean you are getting ‘bad’ advice, but you may not be getting the ‘best’ options.
When it comes to media sources, even financial media, there are different degrees of bias. If you are interested in expanding your media literacy by learning more about news and information biases and how to ensure you’re getting the most impartial information, then please read on.
Continue reading “How biased are your information sources?”
The great thing is that in this age of online subscription services you can select topics that matter to you and have the information delivered directly to you. I have a few different information services that feed updates on personal finance to my email and Twitter accounts. These feeds provide information on a range of topics and are particularly useful if you are nearing a significant life goal like starting or changing careers, or deciding when and where to retire. I receive feeds from a number of different sources, including those specific to industries or technologies I’m following for investing purposes. It’s easy to get overloaded and overwhelmed with all of the different sources, so I recommend getting started with a few that allow you to better understand how to financially plan for life events, stay on top of your money, and comparison shop products and services.
understanding of various financial areas, such as saving, spending, investing, insurance, budgeting, retirement and tax planning.