Old Media Lets Obama's Shaky CEO Earnings Claim Go Unchallenged

Tom Blumer has a good entry over at NewsBusters.org. I've done my own math here, but the pont is exactly the same. From his article:

It's an extraordinarily clever claim. It gets your attention. It's misleading. And of course, Old Media isn't questioning it. I am referring to the following statement made by Barack Obama in radio ads currently running in Ohio and Texas: "Some CEOs make more in 10 minutes than some American workers make in a year."

Really? Let's find out!

If the minimum wage earner makes $5.85/hour and works 40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year, that comes to: $12,168/year.

Now, in order to make that much in ten minutes:

$12,168 x 6 ten-minute periods = $73,008/hour.

If you assume a 40 hour work week and 52 weeks a year, then the annual salary is: $151,856,640.

That's a pretty good take if you ask me. But how many CEOs really make that much?

6, According to Forbes. Steven P. Jobs, Ray R. Irani, Barry Diller, William P. Foley, Terry S. Semel and Michael S. Dell.

Oh, and if you look at the Top Celebrity earners, Obama supporter Oprah Winfrey tops out the list at $260,000,000, well above the claim made by Senator Obama. I guess Oprah is just really exploiting the poor. I wonder if the Senator is going to call her out?

You can access the complete article on-line here:

Old Media Lets Obama's Shaky CEO Earnings Claim Go Unchallenged
Tom Blumer
NewsBusters.org
February 25, 2008