Wanna see a trick? Give us any topic and we can tie it back to the economy. At Planet Money , we explore the forces that shape our lives and bring you along for the ride. Don't just understand the economy – understand the world. Support public media by joining NPR+ at plus.npr.org . You’ll get perks for over 25 NPR podcasts, including bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening for Planet Money.
The podcast explores the economics of the book publishing industry through the lens of Planet Money's own book deal. It begins with literary agents approaching Planet Money about writing a book, leading to a proposal and subsequent auction. The concentration of the publishing industry into five major conglomerates is h...
The episode explores the decline of the ornamental fish industry in Barcelos, Brazil, once the world's cardinal tetra capital, due to competition from fish farms in Asia and Florida. It highlights the story of Deco, a local fisherman, and Scott Dowd, a conservation biologist, who are trying to sustain the industry by e...
The podcast explores the increasing role of robot chefs in the restaurant industry, questioning their impact on jobs, wages, and the dining experience. It highlights the economic forces of "displacement" and "reinstatement" caused by automation, citing a study that found increased automation leads to decreased employme...
This episode of Planet Money revisits the "laws of the office," exploring economic principles that explain workplace behavior. The hosts delve into Goodhart's Law, illustrating how easily metrics can be gamed, and Parkinson's Law, demonstrating how work expands to fill the time allotted, even tasking a new producer to ...
The NBA's tanking problem, where teams intentionally lose to improve draft picks, is examined, along with potential solutions. The current draft system's incentives are explored, highlighting how teams exploit the rules, such as the Houston Rockets in 1984. Proposed reforms include the "draft wheel," which assigns draf...
The podcast explores the business and cultural phenomenon of the Canadian TV show "Heated Rivalry." It highlights the differences between the Canadian and U.S. entertainment industries, particularly regarding funding and intellectual property ownership. The Canadian system allows producers to retain IP through governme...
The podcast explores the replication crisis in science, focusing on economist Abel Brodeur's efforts to address the issue. Brodeur's initial experience of manipulating data to achieve statistically significant results in his smoking ban research led him to investigate the prevalence of p-hacking in academic publishing....
The Planet Money podcast examines the rapid expansion of ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and its consequences. It addresses concerns about the quality and duration of training for new ICE agents, noting a decrease in training hours and the elimination of Spanish language instruction. The discussion includes t...
The Supreme Court's ruling against President Trump's tariffs, imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEPA), is the central focus. The ruling, based on the court's interpretation that IEPA doesn't authorize such broad tariffs, raises questions about refunds for businesses and consumers. Customs l...
The podcast explores the strategic importance of Greenland to the United States, particularly in the context of rare earth minerals and geopolitical positioning. It highlights the U.S.'s historical dependence on China for rare earth processing and China's growing interest in Greenland's infrastructure and mineral resou...
This episode of Planet Money celebrates Valentine's Day by exploring various economic and cultural phenomena the hosts admire. The show highlights the entry of the 1930 version of Betty Boop into the public domain, discussing the implications of intellectual property laws and the character's unique status as an indepen...
This episode explores the history and impact of patent pools, focusing on how they enable collaboration among inventors while navigating antitrust laws. It begins with the story of the Singer sewing machine, highlighting how a patent pool resolved conflicts between competing inventors and spurred innovation. The discus...
The podcast explores the economic impact of US sanctions on Iran and their unintended consequences. It traces three key moments in Iran's economic history: the post-revolution rejection of Western influence, a period of economic opening in the 90s, and the contraction caused by comprehensive sanctions starting in 2010....
The episode explores the complexities of the subprime auto loan market and the ripple effects of car repossessions through the perspectives of a car salesman, a car buyer, and a repo man. It highlights the ethical dilemmas faced by subprime lenders, balancing the need to provide transportation to those with bad credit ...
The podcast explores the increasing difficulty of buying a house and examines potential solutions proposed by the Trump administration. It highlights the story of James, a National Guard member stationed in Djibouti to save for a down payment, as an extreme example of the lengths people go to in order to afford housing...
The podcast explores whether improving neighborhoods can help people rise out of poverty, focusing on the HOPE VI program, which aimed to revitalize high-poverty areas by creating mixed-income communities. A study by Harvard economist Raj Chetty analyzed data from over a million families and found that children who gre...
The episode investigates the legal and ethical complexities surrounding the rise of psychedelic churches in the United States, focusing on Zide Door Church, a mushroom church in Oakland. It examines how these churches operate in a legal gray area, distributing controlled substances under the guise of religious freedom....
The Planet Money podcast explores the process of naming and theming a board game, "Sell Me a Sasquatch," in collaboration with Exploding Kittens, aiming for big box retail success. The hosts initially consider a car-themed game based on the "Market for Lemons" but explore alternative themes like Misfit Mascots and Cats...
The podcast explores the history of Venezuela as the world's first petrostate and Chevron's enduring presence within it. It traces Venezuela's transformation from a coffee-exporting agrarian society to an oil-dependent economy after a major oil discovery in 1922, leading to the rise of the "Dutch Disease" and the "reso...
The podcast examines how Donald Trump and his family have profited during his second term as president, estimating their gains at nearly $4 billion. This sum includes earnings from foreign hotel deals, merchandise, and crypto ventures, all seemingly boosted by Trump's presidential status. A key point is the shift from ...
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