Line Up Your Sources for the War in Iraq

In 1815, banker Nathan Rothschild used advanced knowledge of Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo, provided by carrier pigeons, to front-run the British securities markets. In 1990, Wall Street traders introduced televisions to trading floors to get CNN's broadcasts from Baghdad. In the Internet era, there's almost too much information on what may well be the most advertised war in history. How do you separate information from opinion, opinion from propaganda?

By my estimates, the S&P 500 is about 15% lower and the price of a barrel of oil is $5 higher than they would be if war with Iraq was not on the horizon. Uncertainty about this war affects the prices of gold, treasury bonds, international markets and insurance rates on shipping.

During the next few months, tracking any military action in Iraq is vital for investors -- and the smartest of the bunch will know where to find the most accurate and up-to-date information on the Web. Here's a list of the Web sites I am using to keep up with the events. Before you send me nasty emails calling me a war profiteer, let me point out that good information is critical to anyone with an interest in international affairs.

The Basics

The New York Times' and the Washington Post's Web sites are must reads for breadth and depth. Unfortunately, the Web sites aren't updated prior to the publishing of the paper editions, which limits real-time utility. The Economist, a British publication, publishes on a weekly schedule on its site, which permits a deeper analysis of events not just in the United States and Europe, but also in the Middle East, Latin America and Asia. A subscription to the site costs $69/year in the U.S., or get Web access for free with a $129 subscription to the magazine.

Breaking News

Watching CNN and MSNBC 24/7 is not practical for me, but checking these Web sites a couple of times a day gets me the on-air content pretty much in real time. You can subscribe to the optional "breaking news" email services. "Top Stories" at Yahoo!News includes AP and Reuters content. Most U.S. newspapers derive their international coverage from these two sources.

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David Edwards is a portfolio manager and president of Heron Capital Management, a New York management firm. Edwards was a contributor to Harry Domash's Fire Your Stock Analyst: Analyzing Stocks On Your Own available at Amazon. At the time of publication, his firm held no positions in any companies named in this column, though positions may change at any time. Under no circumstances does the information in this column represent a recommendation to buy or sell stocks. Edwards appreciates your feedback and invites you to send it to David Edwards.