Michael Driscoll: Selected Work

[michaeldrisc]

Kentucky Derby Is a Favorite for a ‘Super’-Size Wager

The Kentucky Derby’s popularity and large field of horses offer a chance to hit on a lucrative version of the superfecta—correctly predicting in order the first four horses to cross the finish line.

[michaeldrisc]

In the World of Stock Trading, a Change Is Gonna Come

Action in the stock markets may be sluggish, but not among the market actors.

[michaeldrisc]

Selling Songs for a Song? Scrutinizing the Streaming Model

How much is one play of a song really worth? Ever since streaming service Spotify AB put a number on that—around seven-tenths of a penny—the music industry has debated whether the figure is fair. A look at royalties in the digital age shows that, while Spotify’s compensation falls short when compared with income from compact-disc spins, the company outperforms when it comes to passing along revenue more broadly.

[michaeldrisc]

Pinnacle Is Hoping Investors Feel Hungry

Pinnacle Foods hopes to draw investors to the table this week with an IPO that looks to raise more than half a billion dollars.

[michaeldrisc]

Ease up on the exaggerations. You may need those explosive adjectives when a truly big story lands ... A column I wrote for the Columbia Journalism Review.

[michaeldrisc]

California Chrome Runs Straight Past the Breeding Shed

The former Triple Crown contender is still running strong as a 5-year-old—an age when his champion peers have long retired—and hopes to win Saturday’s $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic

[michaeldrisc]

Thank a High-Frequency Trader for That Dip in Volatility - MoneyBeat - WSJ

New data out from Credit Suisse points to some of the salutary effects of high-frequency trading.

[michaeldrisc]

Facebook will join the Nasdaq-100 Index at the start of trading next Wednesday, Nasdaq OMX Group said.

[michaeldrisc]

BATS Says 'System Issue' Has Led to Pricing Problems Over Past 4 Years

Stock-exchange operator BATS Global Markets Inc. said Wednesday that a "system issue" has allowed hundreds of thousands of transactions to be executed at prices that weren't the regulator-required best ones available at the time.

[michaeldrisc]

Jerry Lewis, Comic Giant of the 20th Century, Dies at 91

Jerry Lewis, the frantic funnyman whose knack for broad comedy took him from the Borscht Belt of upstate New York to the pinnacle of 20th-century stardom, has died, according to his manager. He was 91.

[michaeldrisc]

Tight Trading Range Could be Warning for Stock Bulls

A stock or index opening and closing at nearly the same level may suggest waning investor enthusiasm.

[michaeldrisc]

Whoa, Nelly! Triple Crown Winners Are Bad for Stocks

Horse-racing fans might be rooting for a California Chrome victory at the Belmont Stakes next month, but stock investors aren't. A racehorse winning the Triple Crown is decidedly bearish for the Dow.

[michaeldrisc]

Bears Circle J.C. Penney as Earnings Loom

J.C. Penney Co. may be in turnaround mode, but it seems to lately be inspiring enthusiasm in only one segment of the speculative-investing crowd: the bears.

[michaeldrisc]

How 51 Senate Seats Could Be Precarious Majority

Republicans working toward the 51 seats that will give them control of the Senate might be wise to think about a margin with a bit more breathing room—and Democrats shouldn’t savor the victory too much if they’re able to hold on. Senate makeups have a tendency to shift between elections.

[michaeldrisc]

Back in the day it seemed like whup-ass cans were opened just about every time a pitcher tossed a brush-back ball. So what’s with the Major League group hug? Here’s a thought: They’re off the ‘roids.

… A story I did for the Village Voice about baseball, steroids and fights. I still stand by this theory.

[michaeldrisc]

The bidding has been slow since I began showing my '88 Camry around town a few months ago. But I might put up a sign anyway: She's "Not for Sale."... Written while I was a columnist at The Journal in Martinsburg, W. Va.