Maven: The Banality of 'Black Friday'

Only two choices? Most of the media, after Cyber-Monday, starts focusing, in rapid succession, on a long series of defining days, like "Super Saturday" and "Last-Minute Friday."

What is the answer?

The New York Post ran one story, just about all the people in line. (An Associated Press story run by The Post included the story of a sisterly argument over who was first and who cut in line.)

All these sorts of articles receive The Business Press Maven's dreaded "Back of the Hand" award. But garnering The Business Press Maven's coveted "Nod of Approval" award for no other reason than the fact that the others were so bad is another article in The New York Post.

In a small amount of space, it points out the increased irrelevancy of "Black Friday" as a barometer of anything for investors and, by extension, the start of any story line about holiday sales.

The article quoted numbers that only a third of customers said they planned to shop on Black Friday, down from nearly 45% only four years ago.

The first Post article -- the lame one? It only mentioned that a third of shoppers would shop that day. It did not step on the excitement by pointing out that the number had seriously dwindled in short-order.

Moreover, the good article noted what the bad one did not: how many sales started a week ago.

And though the good article does not say so, sales have stretched further and further toward Christmas, as online sales have grown in prominence.

In the end, of course, all it means is this: Investors should never take the bait, as each of these tidily named days rolls around, to think that any one of them means anything.

With gas prices down, the economy in a sweet spot of not-too-hot-not-too-slow growth and the stock market strong, we are going to have a good (but not spectacular, by any means) holiday season. And even though the same sort of coverage keeps popping up like a bad penny, you need to think for yourself. With the Internet, international business and the busy nature of people's lives, the shopping season is six weeks long. Goodness knows and so now do Business Press Maven readers that no single day has more than a feather's touch of influence anymore.

1 What would best describe your stance heading into the coming week of trading? Bullish Bearish Neutral 2 Which of these sectors do you think is set to move up in the coming week? --Choose One--Aerospace and DefenseAirlinesAutomobilesBeverages and Food ProductsBiotechnologyCommercial BanksComputers and PeripheralsConsumer NondurablesEnergy Equipment & ServicesHMOs and HospitalsHomebuildingInsuranceIntegrated OilInternet, Software ServicesInvestment Bankers and BrokersMediaMultiline RetailPharmaceuticalsPrecious MetalsSemis, Semi EquipmentTelecom EquipmentTobacco and AlcoholWireless CommunicationsUtilities 3 Which of these sectors do you think is set to move down in the coming week? --Choose One--Aerospace and DefenseAirlinesAutomobilesBeverages and Food ProductsBiotechnologyCommercial BanksComputers and PeripheralsConsumer NondurablesEnergy Equipment & ServicesHMOs and HospitalsHomebuildingInsuranceIntegrated OilInternet, Software ServicesInvestment Bankers and BrokersMediaMultiline RetailPharmaceuticalsPrecious MetalsSemis, Semi EquipmentTelecom EquipmentTobacco and AlcoholWireless CommunicationsUtilities View the results without voting

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