I'm probably the only professional in the investment business that doesn't have CNBC, the business television network, blaring in the background in my office. I do have a television in my office. I use it to watch sporting events, mostly. But I rarely tune into CNBC. One reason is that I'm afraid of what I'll do if I'm inundated with news all day. I can see why people get caught up in short-term thinking watching CNBC. One day feels like a lifetime given all the stuff that is reported each day.

This company's earnings. That company's lawsuit. This new CEO. That new product. This hot new IPO. That sexy new technology.

And the opinions. Oh, the opinions. Everybody has an opinion on Wall Street, and CNBC makes sure you know everyone's opinion. Every minute of every day.

It's enough to drive you nuts. Or at the very least, enough to make you do things in your investment program that you shouldn't.

Reacting to news on CNBC or any other financial media outlet is a loser's game simply because this information may only be "news" to you. You are not first on the information food chain. If you read about something in The Wall Street Journal, you're not alone. Millions of other investors are reading it at the same time, and millions more investors knew about it 24 hours earlier when the "news" actually took place. It's silly to think that what you hear on CNBC gives you a leg up in the information game. Chances are, the stock already is reflecting the information by time you decide to move on the "news."

Don't get chased out of stocks simply because of a single news event that the financial media trumpets as being important. Chances are, that news event is some trivial piece of data whose primary value is to fill airtime.