The Wall Street Journal‘s headline today:
TEPID JOB GROWTH FUELS WORRY: Unemployment Rate Hits 7.8% as Economy Stays Sluggish
Doesn’t the word “hits” there kind of make you think the rate rose to 7.8%? But no, it was 7.8% last month too, and is down from 8.5% at the end of last year.
Meanwhile, the New York Times goes with
JOB CREATION IS STILL STEADY DESPITE WORRY: Gain of 155,000 Keeps Jobless Rate at 7.8%
which gets the constancy of the unemployment right — but “steady” alone conveys a misleadingly sunny impression.
Cheers to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, which rolls it pretty straight down the lane:
JOBLESS RATE STAYS PUT: U.S. economy adds just 155,000 jobs in its 34th month of subpar growth
It’s steady and tepid!
