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Gross Domestic Product statistics for the final quarter of 2008 found activity shrinking at a 6.2% annual rate and so all three networks covered the cratering economy. "The revised number was shockingly higher," stated CBS' Anthony Mason (no link), meaning shockingly lower. Consumer spending declined faster than at any time since 1980 and "business equipment had its worst fall in more than half a century." ABC's Betsy Stark looked at joblessness in California, now more than 10% of the state's labor force, and the worst quarterly decline in exports in 38 years. Her lone ray of hope: "Any improvement in 2009 is likely to come courtesy of the government's giant stimulus plan."
So how will we know when the economy is starting to show signs of health? NBC assigned CNBC economist Steve Liesman to suggest the metrics for its Meltdown: Making Sense of it All series. He pointed to the banking sector as key: when it raises private capital and repays federal bailout funds. "But you cannot get the banks healthy again until you get consumers spending again. After years of loading up on debt consumers are saving more now than they have in years."
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