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To: Gorak Shep who wrote (3688)	9/20/1999 2:57:00 PM
From: Gary M. Reed	Respond to of 17683

Gorak, Re: Maria, I found the timing of this latest IBM call very strange. Think back three months ago, to the last triple-witch options expiration date... 3:00 EST, an hour before the close, Maria starts yapping about an IBM downgrade by a Morgan Stanley analyst. As a result, market goes into a tailspin...anyone who had S&P puts, was short calls, etc., cleaned up in that last hour of trading. Exactly the same thing that happened Friday...only thing different was this last time the firm was Merrill instead of MS. If a firm's option desk had some positions that needed to be cleaned up on expiration day, they couldn't ask for better timing. I find this situation very strange. 95% of all analyst calls are made pre-open. How many times have you seen an analyst make a major call on a stock at 3:00 EST, with an hour of trading left? Not often, that's for sure. Just seems odd that the last two times it has happened, both times were on options expiration days. Stranger still is this: Ok, you're an analyst, you just made a major call with an hour of trading left. Your sales force (who you work for) has institutions lined up wanting to discuss your IBM call with you...with only an hour of trading left, these guys want the scoop before the market closes. But...you put these guys on hold and phone a reporter, "hey Maria, this is Steve...just wanted to let you know about my latest IBM call I just made..." I don't think so. After making such a pivotal call, the only reason you'd talk to a reporter before you spoke to your institutional clients was if your IBM call was intended to move the market and you wanted blanket exposure (CNBC)for the maximum effect. I've always been extremely skeptical on conspiracy theories, but this is a bit too coincidental. A lot of people are raising concerns about potential conflicts of interest with CNBC owning an ECN. I originally thought these concerns were ludicrous. However, Maria's last two IBM pronouncements, both with an hour left on options expiration day, make me wonder. If Maria is willing to shill for other firms' trading desks, who's to say she wouldn't do it to aid CNBC's ECN in some way? And yes, the shameless self-promotion schtick is very nauseating indeed.