Today the Labor Department will release job numbers for November. Unemployment is expected to stay even at 9.6 percent, making this the longest continuous stretch of high unemployment since the Great Depression. 

Economists hope to see strong hiring for a second consecutive month in the private sector...but if they don't, and if unemployment remains above nine percent, the U.S. economy will soon break the record for the longest streak of high unemployment since the recession of the 1980's. It's not a record anyone will cheer to see broken.

Back when WikiLeaks wasn’t a household name, editor Julian Assange mentioned to ComputerWorld magazine that he had 5 gigs of information from a Bank of America executive’s hard drive. Then last week, Assange mentioned to Forbes that he has something that may take down “a bank or two,” refusing to specify which ones.

There’s only a few weeks left before the end of 2010 year, and we’re asking you, our listeners, to tell us what stood out the most to you this year. So far we've received videos, photos and phone calls, creating a growing spectrum of thoughts on the year from all of you.  

After 35 years representing Minnesota constituents in the U.S. House of Representatives, Democratic Rep. Jim Oberstar will empty his office on Capitol Hill at the end of this month. Oberstar currently serves as the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, a position he has held since 2007. He is one of dozens of incumbents voted out of office earlier this year during midterm elections. What are his thoughts on the eve of his departure?

Challenger Alassane Ouattara beat Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo in a recent election in that country, but President Gbagbo says he's not going anywhere. The current president is leveling accusations of election fraud at his elected replacement, and violence has erupted in the country — witnesses say eight Ouattara supporters were killed by gunmen at their headquarters. Borders are now being closed, and foreign news outlets are being blocked from the country by the regime in power.  

We're joined by Adam Nossiter, West Africa's bureau chief for The New York Times, for more on this story.

We speak with Colin Firth about his latest film, “The King’s Speech,” which centers on Queen Elizabeth’s father, King George VI. Firth plays Albert George, unexpectedly forced to take the throne after the death of his father and abdication of his older brother. As World War II looms, George must overcome his lifelong stuttering problem and address the nation.

His peers in the house have voted to censure New York Congressman Charlie Rangel; is the long drama finally over? 

Yesterday afternoon, Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY) became only the 23rd Representative to be officially censured in Congressional history. Some members had called for an official reprimand, instead, but the House voted overwhelmingly for censure, 333 to 79. A defiant Rangel took to the floor in response, saying, "Even though it is painful to accept this vote, I am fully aware that this vote reflects, perhaps, the thinking of the members, but the political tide and the constituency of this body.”

Darren Aronofsky's dark ballet film "Black Swan" opens today, and it's already being mentioned as a contender for Oscar season. But the film elicited very different reactions from our movie contributors, Kristen Meinzer and Newsday film critic Rafer Guzman.

We're still getting your responses on the Wikileaks document leaks, and we've heard from people on all sides of the debate. Earlier we asked: Is the Wikileaks document release anti-American? 

On our site, Mikael wrote: 

"I feel that in spite of what others may think of Mr. Assange, I agree with most that he did a service to the American people by releasing the docs and exposing the 'real' government that we don't get to see. Who knows what else they cover up and will never tell us, the people, about."

The current Postmaster General is retiring this week with a nearly $5.5 million retirement package. The U.S. Postal Service has lost over 100,000 jobs and about $8.5 billion over the past decade. The numbers do not look good, and as electronic communication leeches away more and more business, they're not expected to improve. So, what should be done with the USPS?

Soccer's ruling body FIFA has anointed the latest set of World Cup hosts, and the choices may strike people in the West as frustrating and strange: Qatar and Russia!? In Qatar, it was a historic choice: The tiny emirate will be the first Muslim nation to host the largest sporting event of the globe. We're joined by Stephanie Hancock, reporter for our partner the BBC in Qatar, joins us for more on the story. 

In 1970, three young alumni from the Harvard Lampoon started a national version of their campus humor magazine. It was called National Lampoon, and in the forty years since its launch, the Lampooon's humor and former members have permeated television, film, and just about every other cultural outlet in America.

It sounds like something you'd see in a late-night Sci-Fi flick: Scientists have discovered bacteria in a California lake that uses arsenic instead of phosphorous to survive. Arsenic is plentiful in the universe, and so bacteria that uses it to survive suggests the possibility of alien life. But just how likely is it that this bacteria exists in space?

Employers added only 39,000 jobs last month — a big decline from October's 172,000. Private companies created the fewest number since January. The anemic month for the labor sector pushes the national unemployment rate from 9.6 to 9.8 percent. That's 19 months of a rate over 9 percent, the longest stretch on record. What do the new numbers mean for the economy? 

India's Attorney General has filed a case to double the payout for a 1984 tragedy caused by U.S. chemical company Dow Chemicals. The company owned a Union Carbide chemical plant in Bhopal, India, which leaked gas 26 years ago and caused the death of thousands of people in the area. Dow Chemical paid a $470 million settlement in 1989, but now India is petitioning for over $1 billion.