Chairman Bernanke's Clarity Issue

For a Federal Reserve chairman, loose lips may not sink ships, but they can send Wall Street into a tizzy, as Ben Bernanke has learned three months into the job. The markets took a tumble on May 2 after CNBC anchor Maria Bartiromo announced on the air that the Fed chief had told her at a party that investors had misconstrued his stance on a possible end to rate hikes in his Apr. 27 speech before lawmakers. (Bartiromo contributes a regular column to BusinessWeek.)

Chalk it up to on-the-job training for the world's most powerful central banker. Bernanke has made it his mission to bring more openness to an institution that has long shielded its deliberations from the public. While straight shooting may have backfired in this skirmish, Bernanke is unlikely to step back from his campaign.