“The Card Game” Misses Opportunities to Educate on Personal Finance
"The Card Game" could have done with less shopping spree b-roll footage and more down-to-earth advice
PBS FRONTLINE has released a new documentary, The Card Game, that takes an interesting though none-too-cheery look at banking fees – specifically credit, debit, payday loan and overdraft fees. The film is one hour in length and can be viewed free online here.
For financial buffs, the documentary is an intriguing look into the unsavory practices of the industry, however, it doesn’t offer much in the way of practical advice for consumers, instead portraying the banking world as a bleak, hopeless landscape where everyone is roundly cheated and defrauded. Those of us who have been around the personal finance blogosphere know a little better.
With respect to FRONTLINE’s work, here are four criticisms I have on how the film could have done more to educate about banking and personal finance.
The film holds no punches in going after banks with bad practices, but makes zero mention of the ones with good practices. Discussion of good banks may have been outside the scope of the documentary, but it would have been nice for some people to know the great alternatives that exist to the abuses shown in the film. For example, ING Direct offers a low APR credit line on their checking account that can kick in to prevent overdraft fees. Also, Lending Club offers low APR personal loans to qualified borrowers that can be used to pay off more expensive credit card debt.
Only two brief examples of credit card refinancing are given in the film, and neither is particularly positive: taking equity out of a home and using payday loans. Personal loans or balance transfers are never mentioned. This is an unfortunate omission because the film frequently implies that the credit card industry is “trapping” debtors under high interest rates. This is not necessarily the case so long as cheaper refinancing options are available.
The film portrays the banking industry as making “those who can least afford it pay the most” when it is actually very possible for the poor to pay nothing and still receive generous banking services. I, myself, earn less than the average U.S. wage and yet I’ve never paid a credit card finance fee in my life, and I’ve received much in the way of cash back, mileage rewards, 0% financing and other benefits. I may be “poor,” but because of a well-maintained credit score, a careful choice of banking products, and responsible account management, banks pay me money, not vice versa.
The film gives generous mention to the massive profits credit card companies made from customers during the height of the financial bubble, but it mostly glosses over the huge losses that they have recently suffered. By definition, these losses have subsidized consumers, either through credit card rewards, low- or no-interest balances, or purchases that were simply never repaid. The most profound example of this was probably American Express paying customers $300 to close their accounts. This doesn’t forgive previous bad practices, but it’s an important part of the credit card “story” that should have been included in the film.
While The Card Game, like most of FRONTLINE’s productions, is a good work of muckraking journalism, the film itself doesn’t do a whole lot to empower the individual in the realm of personal finance. Thankfully, the film’s companion webpage does have a section offering some practical financial tips for consumers.
What do you think? Should FRONTLINE have given a more nuanced view of the banking industry, or does banking as a whole deserve the hefty criticism this documentary doled out?
