Lester Holt Under Fire For Failing To Report On Worst Jobs Data In Years

The U.S. Labor Department on Friday reported that non-farm payroll jobs grew by just 12,000 positions across the country, a number that, if history is a guide, indicates the U.S. likely lost jobs in October. The anemic jobs growth was the worst performance by the economy since December of 2020, nine months into the COVID-19 pandemic, and represented a sharp decline from the 223,000 jobs added in September.

The worst jobs report since the middle of the pandemic landed with a thud on the doorstep of the White House, threatening to imperil Vice President Kamala Harris’s candidacy in the campaign’s closing days. In the aftermath, NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt has faced criticism for not reporting on what economists and commentators are now calling one of the most disappointing jobs reports in years.

Released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) on Friday, the data showed that the U.S. economy added only 12,000 jobs in October, far below the 113,000 jobs economists had predicted. This marked the lowest monthly job growth since December 2020.

The latest BLS figures also revealed a 28,000-job decline in private sector payrolls, a large contrast to the anticipated 90,000 increase. Making matters worse, job growth in August and September was revised downward by a combined 112,000, amplifying concerns about a sluggish labor market. Alfredo Ortiz, President of the Job Creators Network, described the report as the “worst jobs report since the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Despite these significant numbers, NBC Nightly News—led by Holt—opted not to cover the story on its broadcast. ABC World News Tonight and CBS Evening News provided coverage of the data, though NewsBusters noted that both networks downplayed the implications, citing factors like hurricanes and the recent Boeing strike as contributors to the low job numbers. In contrast, NBC ignored the report altogether, leading some to accuse the network of shielding Vice President Harris and the Biden administration from negative economic news in the days leading up to the election.

Many were quick to react. Charles Payne of Fox Business was among the first Friday morning to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration’s habit of touting job growth only to revise those numbers lower months later suggests that October probably saw a net loss of jobs, due in part to devastating hurricanes that battered several states along the East Coast.

“Jobs Report is a disaster and its disingenuous to assume ‘experts’ that contributed to consensus didn’t factor into their estimates hurricanes and strikes,” he wrote on X. “Moreover, huge negative revisions continue to reveal a much weaker labor market than the media and economists portray.”

Jobs Report is a disaster and its disingenuous to assume “experts” that contributed to consensus didn’t factor into their estimates hurricanes and strikes.

Moreover, huge negative revisions continue to reveal a much weaker labor market than the media and economists portray. pic.twitter.com/bf8RKJ6gMa

— Charles V Payne (@cvpayne) November 1, 2024

Instead of addressing the BLS data, NBC chose to focus on a separate story involving former President Donald Trump, raising further questions about the network’s editorial priorities. In response, conservative groups have urged viewers to call NBC News and demand accountability.

(VOTE: Should ’60 Minutes’ Be Investigated For Deceptively Editing Kamala Interview?)