The unemployment rate among teenagers (ages 16 to 19) reached 25.5% in August 2009 (table here: bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t01.htm). That's the highest rate since 1948, the year the Department of Labor started keeping statistics.

One of the ways to get teens employed is by enforcing our immigration laws. Many of the jobs that illegal aliens are working - such as fast food, hospitality, and so on - could easily be done by American teenagers. It's difficult for them to compete against foreign citizens who are willing to live twenty to an apartment and who may be more attractive employees to certain employers for various reasons.

Despite that, don't expect to see the Obama administration, the Democrats, or the GOP calling for an increase in immigration enforcement. If you want that, one way is to use leverage by pointing out how those who discuss this issue aren't revealing the role that massive or illegal immigration has played in the current situation.

Which brings us to "Teenage Jobless Rate Reaches Record High" by Catherine Rampell of the New York Times (link). She lists several possible reasons for the high rate but - not surprisingly - doesn't mention immigration. She quotes Andrew Sum of Northeastern University and, since he's written in the past about the role of massive immigration on teen employment, it would be surprising that he didn't mention something about that. Whether he did or didn't, it's not in her article and something about that should have been. Write public *at* nytimes with your thoughts.

And, Garance Burke of the Boston Globe offers "Despite US stimulus, teens left without jobs" (link). While she concentrates on a stimulus plan make-work program and how it didn't work, she should have also mentioned immigration's role. She also quotes Sum. Write ombud *at* globe.com

Finally, Richard Wilner of the New York Post offers this. He got that statistic wrong; the rate isn't 52.2 percent as he says but the figure above: 25.5%. And, he doesn't mention immigration either. Direct your email to webeditor *at* nypost.com

The last was linked by Glenn Reynolds (pajamasmedia.com/instapundit/85835). He repeats Wilner's incorrect statistic and, of course, the movement he's promoted (the tea parties) has shown almost no interest in enforcing our immigration laws but instead is led by those who support massive immigration.

9/28/09 UPDATE: The NYPost has changed their report without indicating what was changed. I had thought Wilner's "52.2%" was him transposing the digits of the teen unemployment rate. Actually, he was referring to the employed/not employed ratio for all persons 16 to 24 but he was (incorrectly) calling that the employment rate. None of that would matter all that much if tens of thousands or more people hadn't seen the article and been misinformed not just on the statistics but because Wilner avoided mentioning massive immigration as one of the key factors leading to the figures he cites.