My weekly news roundup of important financial and media news stories

What We've Been Reading - Week of Sept. 11
Markets & Economy:

• Hostage to a bull market - Op-ed by Jim Grant (WSJ)
  
• Divided Fed inclined to stand pat (WSJ)
  
• The Economic Expansion Is Helping the Middle Class, Finally (WSJ)
  

Asset Management:

• Rock-Bottom Yields Dig Hole for Pensions (Bloomberg)
  
• At Blackrock, a Wall Street Rock Star’s $5 trillion comeback (NYT)
  
• S&P Dow Jones Indexes out with its mid-year scorecard of active managers (Dowjones)
  
• Investors stick with assets that mimic hedge funds (ie. liquid alts) (NYT)
  
• Funds Load Up on Risk as Crisis-Era Securities Make a Comeback (Bloomberg)
  

Long Reads:

• The Wall Street guru who only talks to a hedge fund elite (Bloomberg)
  

Alternatives:

• Hedge funds offer fee cuts and clawbacks (FT)
  
• Some of the biggest hedge funds are bleeding cash (Bloomberg)
  
• One third of hedge funds use hurdle rates in fee formula (Pensions & Investments)
  
• Hedge funds across the globe cut fees in search for investors (Reuters)
  

Media Industry and Journalism:

• How the LA Times broke the Wells Fargo story (Columbia Journalism Review)
  
• Why business stories are often about people (Talking Biz News)