Friday morning headlines

Market dip: Jobs report puts a damper on the trading day, though so far the losses are minimal. Dow is down about 20 points after 90 minutes.

Explaining weak job numbers: WSJ's Phil Izzo says it could be because of the weather.

Temperatures in the U.S. were running above normal from October through late November, but turned sharply lower last month right around the time that the Labor Department calculates its jobs numbers. The change may have triggered seasonal layoffs in outdoor areas of employment, especially construction. Indeed, the construction category of the December report noted a drop of 53,000 jobs. The report also showed that the people "not at work for weather reasons" hit 283,000, the highest reading since 2005.

Jay/Conan update: Look for NBC to make a final decision regarding late night no later than Jan. 21, when the network holds its affiliates board meeting. (Given how quickly the story is breaking, it could be a lot earlier than that.) From Broadcasting & Cable:

According to multiple sources with knowledge of O'Brien's contract with NBC, the network could keep O'Brien off of rival airwaves for two more years even if they decided to completely bench him from NBC, based on his "pay or play" arrangement. But with NBC due to pay O'Brien roughly $25 million over two years, should NBC have decided to jettison O'Brien, the two sides could also negotiate an early release, with options including a smaller payout in exchange for O'Brien's freedom after one year, or even immediately.

LAT sell-out: Kevin has all the distressing details about how the paper's press run adjustments - moving up the deadline by hours - were necessitated because preferential treatment is being given to the WSJ. The Journal had been using the Times' OC printing plant, which is being shuttered, and so now it will take up prime time on the one remaining printing plant. (LAO)

Dropping drug case: Prosecutors want a federal judge to dismiss narcotics trafficking charges against Broadcom co-founder Henry Nicholas III. They are still appealing the dismissal of charges in connection with stock-option backdating. From the LAT:

Criminal law experts said the dismissal of the options cases -- and the judge's findings of prosecutorial misconduct -- hurt prosecutors' chances in the drug case. "The drug charges against Nicholas appeared to be designed to pressure him into pleading guilty in the securities fraud case, or to dirty him up in the eyes of a jury," said Jan L. Handzlik, a former federal prosecutor now defending white-collar cases at Greenberg Traurig in Santa Monica. "So it's not surprising that they're being dropped now. The U.S. attorney's office has exercised its discretion in an appropriate fashion designed both to respond to the comments of the court and to avoid embarrassment."

Fox pulls quiz show: Contestants on the Mark Burnett show "Our Little Genius" were provided information -- though not the actual answers -- ahead of time. "I believe my series must always be beyond reproach, so I have requested that Fox not air these episodes," Burnett said. From THR:

"Genius" was a key piece of Fox's midseason schedule. It was assigned Fox's most lucrative midseason time slot, following "American Idol" on Wednesday. In the wake of its benching, Fox will air a repeat of the 450th episode of "The Simpsons" after a 90-minute "Idol" on Jan. 13 and a rerun of the premiere of the network's new drama "Human Target" the following Wednesday.

Trouble for CA hotels: The number in default or foreclosure jumped from 15 in 2008 to 62 in 2009, a 313 percent increase. The largest hotel to be foreclosed is the 469-room Marriott in downtown L.A. Most of the struggling hotels remain open. (OC Register)

Gas prices keep rising: An average gallon in the L.A. area is $3.045 per gallon, up seven cents over last week, according to the Auto Club.