U.S. economy worse than media says

So I'm watching the evening local news at 6 p.m., and the newscasters are talking about how there are signs that the economy is improving. They note housing sales that have improved three months in a row, "greater than expectations."

However, how hight were the expectations in the first place. That's what we are being told by the media on the local news, as well as on the national scene. I'm wondering, is it true? Is the economy really on the up-swing.

Here is a recent expert quote:

"The first 12 months of the US recession saw the economy shrink more than twice as much as previously estimated, reflecting even bigger declines in consumer spending and housing, revised figures showed. The world’s largest economy contracted 1.9 percent from the fourth quarter of 2007 to the last three months of 2008. 'The current downturn beginning in 2008 is more pronounced,' Steven Landefeld, director of the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis."

Here is what Reuters has to say about the economy:

"US Economy Fares Better Than Expected In Latest Quarter. "'US Economy Fares Better Than Expected In Latest Quarter' -- The US economy contracted at a slower-than-expected pace in the second quarter, government data showed on Friday, but a sharp drop in consumer spending fanned fears that recovery would be sluggish."

Newsweek ran on their front cover, "Recession over?" Time magazine wrote about it.

So, what is the truth? Is the economy improving?

The best indicator according to economists is GDP (Gross Domestic Product), and this has actually contracted for the 4th straight quarter. Yet instead of telling us this, the media points to increased home sales that had no where to go but up and uses this marker to tell us the economy is improving.

They say this, and then they say the U.S. economy shrank less than 1% this year, less than expected. Okay, that's fine, but it is still a shrinkage. And we still have more people unemployed than during the Great Depression.

So, according to the media, the recession is getting better because the "shrinkage" was better than expected. And major companies are still laying off people left and right.

Now, is the economy getting better or worse. In think if we analyze the statistics and forget about what we hear everyday by the media of which, according to polls, is 90% liberal and supporters of the democratic party, we can get a true picture of what the economy really is like.