New jobless numbers reflect a shaky recovery, but not all the news is bad. LAUSD's teacher seniority practices. FilmWeek: Barney's Version, Black Swan, I Love You Phillip Morris, among others. TGI-FilmWeek! Honoring Hollywood greats and holiday gift ideas.
Economic doldrums continue, with some hopeful news
The Labor Department’s latest numbers are in and they’re disappointing. The unemployment rate grew to 9.8 percent in November, up two-tenths of a point from October. Employers did add 39,000 jobs, but economists had forecast a gain of 145,000. Private companies created 93,000 jobs overall last month, 54,000 of those coming from small businesses, according to payroll processor Automatic Data Processing. What do all these stats mean for the 15 million Americans still looking for work? What factors determine whether businesses are hiring – or holding back?
Guest:
Christopher Thornberg, Principal, Beacon Economics
Seniority rules, but do students lose?
In the most recent installment of the L.A. Times’ “Grading the Teachers” series another long standing union practice comes under fire—seniority. The Times analyzed eight years worth of value-added test score data and found that 200 effective teachers were laid off to spare their more senior-- and in some cases less effective--counterparts. The teacher’s union argues that until teacher evaluations can be standardized, seniority is the only fair way to go. But if seniority rules and young successful teachers get the pink slip, who wins? Is there a fair way to determine which teachers get the boot when times are tight?
Guest:
Jason Felch, LA Times reporter
FilmWeek: Black Swan, Barney’s Version, I Love You Phillip Morris, Dreams of Jinsha, & more
KPCC film critics Peter Rainer, Henry Sheehan, and Charles Solomon join Larry to review the week’s new film releases including Black Swan, Barney’s Version, I Love You Phillip Morris, Dreams of Jinsha, and Meskada, among others. TGI-FilmWeek!
Guests:
Peter Rainer, film critic for The Christian Science Monitor Henry Sheehan, film critic for henrysheehan.com Charles Solomon, animation critic, author and historian for amazon.com
Live tweeting this week's reviews:
Holiday DVD gift ideas
Not sure what to give your friends and loved ones for the holidays? Take a cue from our movie experts and show your love by gifting some of the best DVDs of the year.
Guests:
Peter Rainer, film critic for The Christian Science Monitor
Henry Sheehan, film critic for henrysheehan.com
Charles Solomon, animation critic, author and historian for amazon.com