Gasoline prices are up more than 50 cents a gallon in a crisis reminiscent of one from President Trump’s first term. In May 2018 he rattled the saber at Iran by pulling out of the nuclear deal and resuming sanctions. Soon, gasoline prices were up roughly 50 cents from the previous year. The media pounced. Some journalists warned the price jump would cause Americans to cut spending.

I remember it clearly because I used this as an example in the principles of management class I taught that semester at Penn State University Berks. All my business classes start with a discussion about the latest news. When gasoline prices spiked, my students were convinced their Memorial Day trips and summer plans were ruined. I asked them to analyze the data themselves, not repeat the media’s conclusions.