Truthout is an indispensable resource for activists, movement leaders and workers everywhere. Please make this work possible with a quick donation.
Washington – The U.S. economy grew at an annualized rate of 2 percent from July to September, the government reported Friday.
The data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis was in line with forecasts from mainstream economists and marked the fifth straight quarter of growth since the end of the Great Recession.
The 2 percent growth rate is hardly robust, however, and was less than half the 5 percent rate in the final three months of 2009.
Friday’s numbers did improve on a revised annualized growth rate of 1.7 percent from April to June this year. Consumer spending rose 2.6 percent in the recently ended quarter, a sign that Americans are slowly loosening the purse strings.
Important Message: Please Read
For 25 years, Truthout has survived by publishing impactful investigative journalism and analysis; distributing full editions 365 days a year; and building a community of readers who support us with small, hard-earned donations.
Eighty percent of our $3 million yearly budget comes from small donors alone. Of those, 8,000 readers support us with monthly donations. Back in 2018, when Facebook decided to suppress the circulation of posts made by organizations, thereby cutting readers off from seeing many articles shared by the news organizations they had intentionally decided to follow, Truthout’s total traffic declined by 40 percent, as nearly all of our traffic from that platform disappeared.
Now, Google has recently rolled out its AI search bar, providing AI summaries instead of directing readers to our site. Google Search is our single largest source of traffic; it’s the route by which nearly one third of our readers find us. Much like in 2018, a shocking 40 percent of our Google traffic has disappeared overnight.
It will not be easy for Truthout to shoulder this blow. Nor will it be easy for our peers and collaborators — news sites that depend on traffic and aren’t bankrolled by large corporations.
If you can support Truthout with a donation today, you can help us resist the AI onslaught. Please give today.