The Economics of Badmouthing: Libel Law and the Underworld of the Financial Press in France Before World War I

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: European Central Bank; Bank of France
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC HISTORY
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0022-0507
• DOI: 10.1017/S0022050711001860
• 发表日期: 2011
• 页码: 616-653
• 关键词: media bias; debt markets; unit-root; reputation; INFORMATION; tests; hand

摘要

This article analyzes the economics of badmouthing in the context of the pre-1914 French capital market. We argue that badmouthing was a means through which racketeering journals sought to secure property rights over issuers' reputation. We provide a theoretical study of the market setup that emerged to deal with such problems, and we test our predictions using new evidence from contemporary sources.