An April 26 CNNMoney.com headline blares:

And the lead of the article reads, “The recovery is picking up steam as employers boost payrolls, but economists think the government's stimulus package and jobs bill had little to do with the rebound, according to a survey released Monday.”

Only problem is: the survey didn't say that.

The April 2010 Industry Survey by the National Association for Business Economics (NABE) did not ask respondents if they think the stimulus package has contributed to economic recovery. It asked 68 NABE members who work in the private sector how the stimulus bill has affected “the number of employees at your company during the past year,” according to a NABE official.

A separate NABE survey conducted in February actually did ask members about the impact of the stimulus on the economy. That survey found that 83 percent of 203 NABE members “believe that GDP is currently higher than it would have been without the 2009 stimulus package.” A Nexis search indicates that CNNMoney.com didn't judge the February survey to be newsworthy.

Those who commit to the CNNMoney.com article beyond the headline and first paragraph would eventually learn that the NABE Industry Survey asked respondents about the impact of the stimulus on jobs “at their company.” From the article:

NABE conducted the study by polling 68 of its members who work in economic roles at private-sector firms. About 73% of those surveyed said employment at their company is neither higher nor lower as a result of the $787 billion Recovery Act, which the White House's Council of Economic Advisers says is on track to create or save 3.5 million jobs by the end of the year.

Clearly, saying the stimulus has not affected employment at your company is not the same as saying it has not helped the wider economy. As NABE's February survey indicates, Obama's economists aren't the only ones saying the stimulus has raised employment over what would have otherwise occurred.

Fortunately, there aren't any prominent media figures out there who would just repeat CNNMoney.com's headline and lead, leaving their untold millions of followers terribly misinformed about what the NABE Industry Survey actually said. Oh wait:

RUSH: CNNMoney.com today: “Economists: The Stimulus Didn't Help.” Duh. We knew this. We knew when it was announced that it wasn't going to help. “The recovery is picking up steam as employers boost payrolls, but economists think the government's stimulus package and jobs bill had little to do with the rebound, according to a survey released Monday. In latest quarterly survey by the National Association for Business Economics, the index that measures employment showed job growth for the first time in two years -- but a majority of respondents felt the fiscal stimulus had no impact.” Told you. Nah-nah-nah-nah-nah-nah.

From the April 26 broadcast of The Rush Limbaugh Show: