3 VIDEOS: Sears "Good News Now"

News of Sears' declining sales, falling profit, management turnover and pummeled stock price ($30 Thursday, down from $103 in September) are nowhere in sight. Instead, you can find video clips from local and national news stations about the 6-year-old girl who saved her little brother, and the couple who donated heating oil to needy families. There is also a spotlight on military families.

All of this goodness is served up, of course, with a list of popular holiday products available at Sears. Sears calls the move "an antidote to the pessimism served up by the traditional news and opinion outlets" and "a fun, new place for a positive pick-me-up."

A pickup in business would no doubt lift Sears' spirits. The Good News Now channel launched on Yahoo News this week and is slated to run through the holidays at http://spotlight.news.yahoo.com.

Save the parking karma: If visiting a crowded mall during the holidays fills you with dread, this could be your lucky year. A new report predicts a record-low turnout as more shoppers worried about their jobs and paying their bills stay home to avoid temptation.

U.S. retail foot traffic is expected to decline 9.9 percent from the same period last year, according to a report released Wednesday from ShopperTrak RCT, a Chicago-based data firm that analyzes shopper movements. Retail sales are forecast to remain flat.

"We are anticipating the lowest retail sales and total U.S. traffic numbers we've seen since we started compiling this data in 2001," said Bill Martin, co-founder of ShopperTrak, "which will most likely leave retailers scrambling to entice consumers into their stores early and often during the holidays."

U.S. foot traffic will decline 12.1 percent in November and fall 8.1 percent in December, the firm predicted. It also forecasts that sales will drop 0.6 percent in November and rise 0.6 percent in December.

In 2007, U.S. foot traffic fell 2.7 percent from the previous year, as retail sales climbed 2.5 percent. ShopperTrak's retail traffic index is based on data from more than 50,000 mall and retail locations.

Grinch on the loose: The Grinch is making his way to online shopping sites, once a haven for retailers combating the slowing economy.

Online spending in the U.S. rose a mere 1 percent in October from a year ago, according to a report from ComScore Inc., marking the lowest monthly growth rate since the online market research firm began tracking e-commerce in 2001.

The slowdown reflected curtailed spending among lower-to-middle-income consumers worried about their jobs, the Reston, Va.-based firm said. Wealthier households were more inclined to shop online, but they, too, have pulled back as their investment portfolios shrink.

It is the six consecutive month of slowing growth rates for the online retail industry. The segment reached a peak in growth rate in August 2007, when monthly sales rose 28 percent, the firm said. The sales data excludes travel, autos and auctions.