My recollection is from job-hunting at the time; I’ve never bought the media line since my parents told me what is what as a child. Even today, Obama is in trouble because no matter what his media claims, the average person (read: voter) is in bad shape; they can fudge numbers, brag about a stock market (which is great if your income is solely generated by realizing gains on a huge equity portfolio - it really doesn’t help the average person in the near term), they can even claim Obama can walk on water. As long as our devalued dollars buy less at the pump or supermarket, and as long as the real number unemployed people (and their social circles) can’t be deceived into believing they’re actually working, Obama is done.
Prior economic indicators have to be looked at differently than in the past; today a company’s stock goes up when they lay off American workers and outsource work. Might be good for a sound-byte, but it is disastrous for American people “on the ground”.
The unemployment rate is a "coincident indicator" which improves after leading indicators, like stock prices, building permits, manufacturers' new orders, vendor delivery times, new unemployment claims, etc., have already improved.
If you were looking for a first job or were young, jobs would still be scarce even as the economy had begun to improve.
Well, you're quite right, and I think he is in trouble -- with the 53% or whatever it is who haven't been bought yet. (And I don't know if the "bought" voters will stay bought: some 60's history from Louisiana elections suggest maybe they won't, if the social issues are on the GOP's side.)
But there is a residual benefit from nonstop, organized, edited-and-concordance-tested Big Lying, and that is that, the voter may decide that it's all lies, but still be demoralized by the thought that masses of other people believe it. Now there is your propagandist's true art, methinks, and the true inducement for JournoList-type lying.