March 10, 2016 | By Greg Fisher

See Magazine correction policies.

From: Greg Fisher [mailto:greg@truthandfalsity.com]
Sent: Wednesday, March 09, 2016 12:30 PM
To: Taylor Tepper, reporter, Money Magazine, Time Inc.
Cc: Jill Davison, vice president, Corporate Communications, Time Inc.; Joseph A. Ripp, CEO, Time Inc.
Subject: credit score, utilization ratio, amount, 20%, 30%, spending Time and Money

Taylor Tepper, reporter
Money Magazine, Time Inc.
New York, New York

Dear Mr. Tepper:

I am with the media, am on a deadline and I am writing about you and your organization, Time Inc. See this message and your response at http://www.creditscoring.com/interaction/2016/03/09-time-inc.html. This is not an act of journalism (incremental journalism if you will) as much as one of recordkeeping. I am calling your office right now.

Your advice is questionable.

According to Fair Isaac, the FICO credit score company, a person could have a so-called utilization ratio of 100 percent on a credit card and still have a score of 757.

However, you wrote

Another tip: Don't use up too much of your available credit limit. Each card gives you an amount it'll let you spend each month. You don't want to spend more than 20% to 30% of that.

Yes, I do.

In other words, what is your rationale for giving such "Dumb" (apparently, your video series is called "Dumb MONEY WITH TAYLOR TEPPER") advice? Who provided that information, or, does it come from first-hand experience? A man who had a prominent position with Fair Isaac wrote an article to dispel the 30 percent solution. On a common sense level, it is, frankly, rather silly that I can't use even half of a credit line for fear of a low score.

To keep track of credit score myths, I created a system of titles. See Credit Score Myth 4 (that 30 percent is a magic number regarding an account's balance to-limit ratio). Also see a tag for this incident, #1603T (T is for Time). It will eventually appear in broad internet searches (see #1601c, for instance).

I would also like your help in solving a mystery. One of your colleagues wrote about, allegedly, a man who has 1497 credit cards. It was all the rage earlier this year. But, I have not been able to locate that person. Is he in contact with anybody? I even called the Guinness Book of World Records, at the center of this mystery. See #1601T (T is for Time).

--
Greg Fisher
Truth and Falsity
truthandfalsity.com
Page A2
pagea2.com
The Credit Scoring Site
creditscoring.com
PO Box 342
Dayton, Ohio 45409-0342
skype fisher100
mobile/text 937-681-3224

From: Chyka, Kerri - TIME U.S.
Sent: Wednesday, March 09, 2016 1:49 PM
To: greg@truthandfalsity.com
Subject: Money inquiry

Greg,

I am on Money's PR team and am looking into your inquiry re: Taylor Tepper's story.

best,

Kerri Chyka
[phone]=[SIC]

From: Greg Fisher
Sent: Thursday, March 10, 2016 12:16 PM
To: Letters to the editor, time.com
Cc: Kerri Chyka, vice president, Communications, Time Inc.; Zeke Miller, reporter, Time Magazine
Subject: RE: credit score, utilization ratio, world history, correction, media error, false information, time.com

Letters to the editor
Time Magazine
New York, New York

Dear Sir:

In October, 2014, you published, "Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell also featured that quote in an ad, saying he was the right choice in these 'serious times.'"

However, Senator McConnell (R-Ky.) was not the majority leader in 2014 (largely due to his political party not being in the majority). I am right and you are wrong; that is the end of the story. Now what?

Reply today, please.

--
Greg Fisher
truthandfalsity.com

Follow the activity of Item #1410m using that hashtag.