Best Microeconomics Podcasts (2024)

1
The Money Behind Ultra-Processed Foods, with Marion Nestle 47:55

12m ago47:55

47:55

Critics of the food industry allege that it relentlessly pursues profits at the expense of public health. They claim that food companies "ultra-process" products with salt, sugar, fats, and artificial additives, employ advanced marketing tactics to manipulate and hook consumers, and are ultimately responsible for an endemic of health ailments among…

1
What global factors could make inflation less stable? 23:54

23m ago23:54

23:54

Most advanced economies enjoyed a long period of low, stable inflation prior to 2021, with inflation in the U.S. actually running below the Federal Reserve’s 2% inflation target for much of the 2010s. This stability was driven in part by factors external to monetary policy, including downward price and wage pressures from globalization and de-union…

1
What is Poverty? 12:12

6d ago12:12

12:12

The episode is a comprehensive introduction to a course on solving poverty, covering topics such as the definition of poverty, its root causes, system analysis, portfolio of solutions, expert insights, the impact of poverty, reasons to address it, and practical steps individuals can take to contribute to poverty alleviation. It also introduces the …

1
The Economics of Student Protests 35:01

14m ago35:01

35:01

Over the last few weeks, university politics has captured headlines as students across the country occupy sections of their campuses and demand that their schools divest from Israel in protest of its contentious war in Gaza. Last week for Compact Magazine, Luigi and Nobel Laureate Oliver Hart stressed that one lesson from these protests is that uni…

1
What do Americans think about inflation? 31:03

14d ago31:03

31:03

Many indicators suggest that the U.S. economy is thriving, yet Americans continue to have a negative overall economic outlook. Stubbornly high inflation has played a significant role in this negative sentiment among consumers, even as wage growth has caught up with the rate of inflation. In a new study, “Why do we dislike inflation?” Stefanie Stant…

1
Is Private Credit In The Public Interest? with Jim Grant 48:59

11d ago48:59

48:59

The meteoric rise of private credit over the last decade has raised concerns among banks about unfair competition and among regulators about risks to financial stability. Historically, regulated banks have provided most of the credit that finances businesses in the United States. However, since the 2008 financial crisis, banks have restricted their…

1
Do US states have different recoveries from economic shocks? 24:18

11d ago24:18

24:18

In the mid-20th century, U.S. states experienced recessions very differently from one another, which resulted in many workers migrating between states in search of work. But a newly developed dataset shows that economic recoveries have begun to look very similar across states in recent decades. On this episode, Senior Fellow Louise Sheiner talks wi…

1
Ralph Nader's Capitalism 48:51

1M ago48:51

48:51

"The only true aging is the erosion of one's ideals," says Ralph Nader, the former third-party presidential candidate who just turned 90 after more than 60 years of consumer advocacy and fighting for small business in America. From influencing the transformative passage of car safety legislation to advancing numerous environmental protection and pu…

1
How did Jamaica halve its debt in 10 years? 29:10

2M ago29:10

29:10

Many countries have faced harrowing debt burdens, and reducing the national debt is usually a lasting challenge. But in just five years, the Jamaica reduced its debt-to-GDP ratio by 40 percentage points, something only a handful of other countries have done in that time frame. On this episode of the BPEA podcast, Peter Blair Henry of Stanford and U…

1
The New Business Of News, with Ben Smith 49:54

1M ago49:54

49:54

Given the recent mass layoffs, acceleration of media consolidation, continued decline of local journalism, and rapid uptake of generative AI, the news industry—fundamental to institutional accountability in capitalist democracies—appears to be in deep crisis. Joining Bethany and Luigi to make the case that journalism can not only survive but thrive…

1
Poverty in America: Terrible Scourge or a Measurement Error? 48:17

2M ago48:17

48:17

Perhaps the biggest evidence that capitalism in America doesn’t work, at least not for everyone, is growing income inequality and the persistence of poverty. But what is the current state of poverty and inequality in the United States? Why do debates still persist about whether poverty has been eradicated? What do the numbers and official statistic…

1
When a Few Financial Institutions Control Everything, with John Coates 49:30

2M ago49:30

49:30

In his recent book, "The Problem of Twelve: When a Few Financial Institutions Control Everything," Harvard law professor John Coates sheds light on the secrecy, lack of public accountability, concentrated power, and the disproportionate influence of a select few institutions in our financial system. Coates joins Bethany and Luigi to dissect the pot…

1
Is Short Selling Dead? With Jim Chanos 50:05

3M ago50:05

50:05

The Wall Street Journal wrote that “Wall Street's best-known bear is going into hibernation" after the legendary short seller Jim Chanos announced he would close his main hedge funds late last year, in part due to diminishing interest in stock picking. Short selling, which bets on drops in asset prices, wins when companies and governments fail and …

1
Manufacturing Influence, with Emily Hund 43:36

3M ago43:36

43:36

According to the latest industry statistics, the global influencer economy grew from $1.7 billion in 2016 to $21.1 billion in 2023 — and it's only expected to grow exponentially from here with advances in artificial intelligence. In 1988, Noam Chomsky and Edward S. Herman investigated how mass media sways audiences to conform to social norms withou…

1
The Capitalisn't of Banking, with Anat Admati 38:45

4M ago38:45

38:45

It's been nearly 16 years since the federal government bailed out Wall Street to the tune of $700 billion in response to the financial crisis that precipitated the Great Recession. The idea that the public must guarantee critical financial institutions that are “too big to fail” was controversial then, but does it still remain an issue? Stanford fi…

1
Ask Luigi Zingales Anything 1:04:07

4M ago1:04:07

1:04:07

After two seasons and 163 episodes, Capitalisn’t hosted its first-ever live event late last year. As part of the University of Chicago Podcast Festival, co-host Luigi Zingales fielded questions from three UChicago undergraduate students — Surya Gowda, Mete Bakircioglu, and Giuseppe Di Cera —and an in-person audience in an “Ask Me Anything.” From th…

1
Who Controls AI? With Sendhil Mullainathan 52:00

5M ago52:00

52:00

The firing, and subsequent rehiring, of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman raises fundamental questions about whose interests are relevant to the development of artificial intelligence and how these interests should be weighed if they hinder innovation. How should we govern innovation, or should we just not govern it at all? Did capitalism "win" in the OpenAI s…

1
What do we miss in standard supply chain measures? 36:38

5M ago36:38

36:38

The COVID-19 pandemic shone a spotlight on supply chains, with shortages in everything from baby formula to microchips. This spurred an on-going policy debate on the need for the U.S. to shore up its supply chains, in some cases literally moving production back to the U.S. or allied nations. However, new analysis published in the Brookings Papers o…

1
Raghuram Rajan’s Vision Of An Indian Path To Development 48:17

5M ago48:17

48:17

After discussing the trajectory of China's economy earlier this year, Luigi and Bethany turn their attention to the future of another global economic behemoth: India. Joining them is renowned Indian economist Raghuram Rajan, who has a brand-new book out this week, "Breaking the Mould: Reimagining India's Economic Future" (co-authored with Rohit Lam…

1
How worried should we be about wage-price spirals? 31:31

5M ago31:31

31:31

Economists have long debated the potential for rising wages and prices to push each other increasingly higher, driving inflation out of control—the so-called “wage-price spiral.” Concern about such a spiral has been high in the post-pandemic era, with inflation still running notably higher than the Federal Reserve’s 2% target. On this episode of th…

1
How Big Law Firms Shape Capitalism, With David Enrich 56:18

5M ago56:18

56:18

After previously exploring the worlds of 'consultants for sale' and 'scientists for sale,' Luigi and Bethany turn their attention to another broken system of 'enablers' - the world of lawyers for sale. With award-winning investigative journalist David Enrich, they discuss David's latest book, "Servants of the Damned: Giant Law Firms, Donald Trump, …

1
Is the post-pandemic surge in business dynamism here to stay? 34:16

5M ago34:16

34:16

Predictably, the rate of new business formations and business expansions at the beginning of the pandemic plummeted. But, in two waves, applications for new businesses and expansions quickly recovered, countering several decades of decline in business dynamism. Surprising many economists, applications have remained much stronger than before the pan…

1
Econtalk: Robert Frank on Inequality 1:01:37

6M ago1:01:37

1:01:37

From Econtalk: Robert Frank of Cornell University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about inequality. Is there a role for public policy in mitigating income inequality? Is such intervention justified or effective? The conversation delves into both the philosophical and empirical evidence behind differing answers to these questions. Ultimately, …

1
The Capitalisn't of Crypto: SBF and Beyond, with Zeke Faux 52:43

6M ago52:43

52:43

In his new book "Number Go Up," Bloomberg News investigative reporter Zeke Faux takes readers on a wild ride through the world of cryptocurrency, from its origins in the dark corners of the internet, its meteoric rise to mainstream popularity, and finally its equally precipitous fall. A few days after the 'convicted' verdict in the trial of beleagu…

1
Vox Talks: Climate shock: the economic consequences of a hotter planet 9:19

6M ago9:19

9:19

From Vox Talks: At the heart of policy debates about our collective responses to climate change is the issue of risk and uncertainty - ‘unknown unknowns’ about the impact of global warming. In this Vox Talk, Gernot Wagner - co-author with Harvard’s Martin L. Weitzman of 'Climate Shock: The Economic Consequences of a Hotter Planet’ - argues for Pigo…

1
How have Fed interest rate hikes affected other national economies? 31:06

7M ago31:06

31:06

In an effort to quell post-pandemic inflation, the Federal Reserve raised short-term interest rates eleven times since March 2022, with the federal funds rate now at its highest in over 20 years. Historically, such interest rate hikes—or even the suggestion of hikes—has triggered financial crises in emerging markets and developing economies. But, s…

1
Planet Money: Quit Threat 22:37

6M ago22:37

22:37

From Planet Money: On today's show, we ask: What does full employment really look like? NPR sent reporters across the country, including to Ames, Iowa, the city with the lowest unemployment rate, to find out. The unemployment rate is just 3.6% in the U.S., a 50-year low. People think we are at, or near, full employment. That's the lowest the unempl…

1
When Capitalism Becomes Tyranny, with Sohrab Ahmari 46:46

6M ago46:46

46:46

In his new book, Sohrab Ahmari argues that the concentration of economic power in the hands of a few corporations has created a new form of tyranny in America. "Coercion is far more widespread in supposedly noncoercive societies than we would like to think—provided we pay attention to private power and admit the possibility of private coercion," he…

1
Econtalk: Noah Smith on Worker Compensation, Co-determination, and Market Power 1:15:17

6M ago1:15:17

1:15:17

From Econtalk: Bloomberg Opinion columnist and economist Noah Smith talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about corporate control, wages, and monopoly power. Smith discusses the costs and benefits of co-determination--the idea of putting workers on corporate boards. The conversation then moves to a lively discussion of wages and monopoly power and …

1
How did Germany fare without Russian gas? 37:18

7M ago37:18

37:18

After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, there was a heated debate in Germany about whether to embargo the import of Russian natural gas as a sanction against Russia’s aggression. Before Germany could act, Russian began cutting the flow of gas to Germany, eventually halting it entirely. On this episode of the Brookings Podcast on Economic Activity, B…

1
The Capitalisn't Of The U.S. COVID Response, With Bethany McLean 42:17

7M ago42:17

42:17

In her brand new book, "The Big Fail: What the Pandemic Revealed About Who America Protects and Who It Leaves Behind," Bethany and her co-author Joe Nocera argue that the COVID-19 pandemic was not simply a natural disaster but also a man-made one. Based on rigorous research and compelling storytelling, Bethany, who is renowned for her incisive repo…

1
Freakonomics radio: The Most Interesting Fruit in the World (Ep. 375) 41:22

7M ago41:22

41:22

From Freakonomics radio: The banana used to be a luxury good. Now it’s the most popular fruit in the U.S. and elsewhere. But the production efficiencies that made it so cheap have also made it vulnerable to a deadly fungus that may wipe out the one variety most of us eat. Scientists do have a way to save it — but will Big Banana let them?…

1
Why is life expectancy falling faster for adults without a BA? 34:53

7M ago34:53

34:53

In their latest research in the Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Anne Case and Angus Deaton show that life expectancy for adults without a BA has been on the decline for almost a decade. On this episode of the Brookings Podcast on Economic Activity, Case discusses the new findings with Carol Graham of Brookings. Show notes and transcript The …

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