Information in the Marketplace: Media Explanations of the '87 Crash

Qualitative analysis of the financial press reveals that explanations of the stock market crash of October 1987 rely on socially embedded conceptions of markets, rather than on prevailing doctrines of economic or financial theory. Mass sentiments and social organizational forces were most pervasive in explaining the price collapse. Similarly, the sources most frequently quoted were experts on the social and political nature of markets, rather than individuals knowledgeable about the productive economy. The paper concludes by considering the implications of the role of media coverage in constituting the market through its accounts of it.