Business

America keeps adding jobs but we’re still not back to normal

By Anneken Tappe, The US jobs recovery has picked up steam again in the final months of the year, bringing some good news in the face of persistently rising prices and a new Covid variant. Economists polled by Refinitiv expect another sizable jobs gain in Friday’s November employment report — 550,000 positions. If that holds true, it would be the biggest monthly gain since July, when more than a million jobs were added. But even so, America’s labor market is still not back to its pre-pandemic strength. If the forecasts are right, the nation would still be down more than 3.5 million jobs compared to February 2020. On

How one local reporter’s instincts focused public attention on the Ahmaud Arbery case

By Ramishah Maruf, The Ahmaud Arbery trial may not have happened without Larry Hobbs, a writer and reporter at The Brunswick News in Georgia. “Every national and global news story begins locally, sometimes with a single reporter who’s determined to follow up and get to the truth,” CNN’s chief media correspondent Brian Stelter said on Reliable Sources Sunday. “That’s what happened in the case of Ahmaud Arbery.” Hobbs was among the first to pick up the story of a Black man who was shot to death while jogging in the afternoon on a residential street. His first lead started with

Jeff Bezos’ rocket company, Blue Origin, to send Michael Strahan to edge of space

By Jackie Wattles, Jeff Bezos’ rocket company, Blue Origin, announced that it would be launching Good Morning America host Michael Strahan to the edge of space. Strahan will be joined by the daughter of the first American astronaut and four paying customers. Liftoff is slated for 9:30 am CT on December 9 from Blue Origin launch facilities near the rural town of Van Horn, Texas. Strahan and Laura Shepard Churchley, whose father Alan Shepard went on a suborbital flight in 1961 and later walked on the moon, will be joined by investors Dylan Taylor, Evan Dick, and Lane Bess, as well as Bess’

Nikole Hannah-Jones: Anti-CRT coverage is a ‘propaganda campaign’

By Ramishah Maruf, What began as a Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times Magazine cover story, the 1619 Project has now produced two books: one for adults, “A New Origin Story” and a children’s book, “Born on the Water.” But even though the 1619 Project books were just released earlier this week, states such as Texas and Florida have already banned the teaching of the subject matter. Republican lawmakers in at least five states introduced bills that would prohibit the 1619 Project from being taught in schools or cut funding to those that use the project to inform curricula. The ban is linked to

Press Freedom Awards ceremony stands up for journalists in ‘increasingly repressive world’

By Brian Stelter, In the words of Committee to Protect Journalists executive director Joel Simon, “To practice journalism in the face of grave danger requires a profound sense of optimism and a sincere faith in humanity.” Those qualities were on display Thursday night at the group’s International Press Freedom Awards ceremony in New York. Journalists from Guatemala, Mozambique, Myanmar, and other countries were recognized for their courageous work. The honorees did not travel to the US, owing to Covid-era concerns and uncertainty, but the fund-raising gala was back in-person, supplemented by an online streaming option. You should read all about the CPJ

Thanksgiving dinner will cost Americans 14% more this year, survey finds

By Vanessa Yurkevich, Thanksgiving dinner will cost 14% more this year, according to new survey by the American Farm Bureau Federation. Dinner for a family of 10 will cost on average $53.31 — up $6.41 from last year’s average of $46.90 which was down 4% from 2019, the lowest in 10 years. Several factors led to this year’s increased pricing, including more Americans expected to cook at home as well as economic disruptions. “These include dramatic disruptions to the US economy and supply chains over the last 20 months; inflationary pressure throughout the economy; difficulty in predicting demand during the COVID-19 pandemic and high

A record number of Americans quit their jobs in September

By Anneken Tappe, A record 4.4 million Americans quit their jobs in September as the sheer volume of available jobs is empowering workers to have their pick. Workers are quitting in search for better pay or better jobs, representing a fundamental shift in America’s labor market. “Labor now has the initiative, and the era of paying individuals less than a livable wage has ended,” said Joseph Brusuelas, chief economist at RSM US. “This strongly suggests that rising wages are going to be part and parcel of the economic landscape going forward.” The nation had 10.4 million open jobs that month as the worker

Surging inflation sets up high-stakes fight in Washington

By Julia Horowitz, Prices for American consumers are rising at the fastest rate in three decades, setting the stage for a standoff between the White House and the Federal Reserve as concerns grow about the political ramifications of inflation. What’s happening: Investors, economists and policymakers were rattled Wednesday by the news that annual consumer price inflation hit 6.2% in October, the biggest increase since November 1990. “Holy cow,” CNBC anchor Rick Santelli told viewers when the data dropped. For months, the Biden administration and the Fed have pushed the public to look through “transitory” inflation as a result of the Covid-19

There could be a seismic shift in the labor market. Here’s why

By Julia Horowitz, America’s job market is showing signs of strength — welcome news after a choppy summer. What’s happening: The US economy added 531,000 jobs in October, according to government data released Friday. That’s stronger than in August and September, though gains for both months have been revised higher. Still, economists are increasingly starting to wonder: As shortfalls of workers persist, has the labor market changed for good? If the answer is yes, the ramifications for policymakers could be huge. Breaking it down: Businesses are still struggling to attract and retain enough staff to keep up with an explosion of demand.

Advocates say this Build Back Better provision is exactly what local newsrooms need

By Brian Stelter, The House version of the Build Back Better Act contains a provision that news media advocates have sought for years. It’s a payroll tax credit that supports local news organizations for employing journalists. The Joint Committee on Taxation pegs it at $1.67 billion over 10 years. The provision “would provide a credit up to $25,000 to defray employment taxes in the first year, and $15,000 in the next four years, for each employee,” Deadline’s Ted Johnson reported Thursday. “That would cover 50% of compensation up to $50,000 in the first year and 30% in the next four years.” Thus, it

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