This morning CNNMoney.com reports "Jobless claims slide in latest week." The article starts:
The number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment insurance fell last week, according to a government report released Thursday.
There were 454,000 initial jobless claims filed in the week ended July 3, down 21,000 from an upwardly revised 475,000 in the previous week, the Labor Department said.
A problem with the story is the numbers are, according to the Department of Labor, "seasonally adjusted" with a statistical technique designed to accommodate fluctuations in the job market. DOL's release paints a more sobering picture:
The advance number of actual initial claims under state programs, unadjusted, totaled 463,560 in the week ending July 3, an increase of 22,560 from the previous week.
Before the Age of Obama, CNNMoney.com explained to its readers the difference between actual and seasonally adjusted numbers. Six years ago today, in fact, the story was "Jobless claims drop, but... Report shows sharp drop in those filing for benefits, but seasonal factors distort results."
But now, apparently, there's no need to write about distorted results. That might put a damper on recovery summer exuberance. And the mainstream media wouldn't want to do that.
