498,619 Americans walked into an employment office, last week, and filed first time claims for unemployed benefits. That number was "adjusted" to 370,000 and reported by the media. No mention can be found for the real number. Yes, they are still playing games with these numbers.

 The Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report was released this morning for last week. The 370,000 new claims number was a 25,000 decrease from a 2,000 upward adjustment of the previous week as the impact of Sandy continues to abate. The less volatile and closely watched four-week moving average, which is usually a better indicator of the recent trend, rose to 408,000. Given the impact of Hurricane Sandy, the four-week MA will show a skew for the next couple of weeks. Here is the official statement from the Department of Labor:

In the week ending December 1, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 370,000, a decrease of 25,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 395,000. The 4-week moving average was 408,000, an increase of 2,250 from the previous week's revised average of 405,750.

http://www.advisorperspectives.com/dshort/updates/Weekly-Unemployment-Claims.php

According to the Department of Labor,  the unadjusted first time claims count,  the actual number of claims filed last week,  was a whopping 498, 619,  not 370,000.