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An Open Letter to The Huffington Post - September 5, 2018

False information about credit scores and employers, and writers misidentify a senator

| By Greg Fisher

Last year, I wrote that an editor of The Huffington Post falsely identified Chuck Schumer.

Then, somebody wrote, "CORRECTION: This post has been updated to reflect Schumer is the Senate minority leader."

Elise Foley, you wrote, "There 'may be' division on that point between Durbin and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Durbin said." #falsity

That is false. Schumer is not Majority Leader.

Rich Rubino, you wrote, "U.S. Representative Ruben Gallego (R-AZ) tattoos Trump as 'an abject Liar,' and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) says Trump is 'a 98 pound weakling.'"

That is false. Schumer is not the majority leader.

Arthur Delaney and Jeffrey Young, you wrote, "More than 40 senators, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), have signed a letter that will be sent to Trump Thursday arguing that the legislation will ‘seriously undermine the privacy protections’ of private citizens who use the internet.”

That is false. Schumer is not in the majority.

Niv Sultan, you wrote, "Van Hollen raked in the most money from lobbyists in the 2016 cycle, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (N.Y.) was next, but a wide gulf separated him from Van Hollen." #falsity #DC #1703aw

That is false. Schumer has never been Majority Leader.

Credit scores

Jared Hecht, in 2016, you wrote, "When a lender, a bank, or even a potential employer looks at your credit score, they’re essentially asking themselves this: 'Can I trust you?'"

That is not true. By that I mean that your premise is false. Contrary to what you think, employers do not use credit scores.




In fact, before your piece, even your Huffington Post colleague Adam Levin wrote, "While they are barred from seeing your credit score, they will see everything else: Delinquencies, outstanding debt-related court judgments, debts currently in collection, high credit utilization rates and bankruptcies (even though Section 525 (b) of the bankruptcy code forbids employers from discriminating against people with bankruptcies on their records)."

And after your piece -- again, in the Huffington Post -- Jeanine Skowronski wrote, "And, in all states, employers can only look at your credit report, not your actual credit score."

Regarding the same issue, even my name appears in the same publication. Allison Kilkenny wrote, "Greg Fisher from creditscoring.com contacted me to point out that the New York Times article I linked to for my example of employers using credit scores during the hiring process reports that 'Employers can generally use credit checks — but not credit scores — during the employment process as long as they obtain written permission from the potential employee' (emphasis mine)."

In 2012, in the Times, Jessica Silver-Greeberg wrote, "The credit score, once a little-known metric derived from a complex formula that incorporates outstanding debt and payment histories, has become an increasingly important number used to bestow credit, determine housing and even distinguish between job candidates."

Please stop making false statements.

This is the 10th anniversary of an article I wrote about the notion that employers use credit scores. Anything after April 24, 2008 that states that they do is uninformed.

What happened after that date should concern you. I am sick and tired of false information. What are you doing about this?

--
Greg Fisher
Truth and Falsity
truthandfalsity.com
The Credit Scoring Site
creditscoring.com
mobile/text 937-681-3224


Follow the activity of Item #1703aw using that hashtag.




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