Make Me Smart

Latest Episodes:

Klarna’s plan to swap workers with AI Aug 30, 2024

Show notes

The CEO of Klarna, the by now, pay later service, said the company plans to cut its workforce dramatically by opting not to replace workers when they quit and instead use artificial intelligence to fill in the gaps. We’ll get into it. And, Nvidia’s earnings that beat analysts’ expectations didn’t impress everybody. Plus, we’ll unpack the Justice Department’s new lawsuit against a rent-setting software company, and celebrate a win for the American wheelchair rugby team.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

“Klarna: AI lets us cut thousands of jobs – but pay more” from BBC News

“Nvidia reports 122% revenue growth on surging demand for data center chips” from CNBC

“How one company transformed the apartment rental market” from Axios

“Chuck Aoki dominates, Sarah Adam makes history as USA Wheelchair Rugby holds off Canada | NBC Sports” from NBC Sports

“Paralympic wheelchair rugby or ‘murderball’ isn’t for the faint of heart” from The Washington Post

Join us tomorrow for Economics on Tap. The YouTube livestream starts at 3:30 p.m. Pacific time, 6:30 p.m. Eastern.

What happened to corporate DEI efforts? Aug 28, 2024

Show notes

Home improvement retailer Lowe’s is the latest in a string of American companies to publicly abandon diversity, equity and inclusion efforts after facing pushback from conservative groups. We’ll get into it. Then, two signs that the global economy may be in trouble. Plus, we’re hype about the Paris Paralympics opening ceremony!

Here’s everything we talked about today:

“Lowe’s becomes latest company to dial back DEI efforts aimed at LGBTQ groups” from NBC News

“Lowe’s followed Tractor Supply, Harley Davidson and John Deere in backing off DEI initiatives” from Fortune

“Africa’s Debt Crisis Has ‘Catastrophic Implications’ for the World” from The New York Times

“A Time Bomb Is Threatening Economies Across Asia” from The Wall Street Journal

“How to watch the 2024 Paris Paralympics: TV and stream info, schedule, start time, top athletes, preview, team news” from NBC Olympics

Join Kimberly Adams for a live Marketplace event on Sept. 23 in Denver about living single in today’s economy. You can find details about it here. Hope to see you there!

Wheelchair rugby’s Chuck Aoki makes us smart about the Paralympics Aug 28, 2024

Show notes

In case you haven’t heard, the Summer Olympics aren’t over! This year’s Paralympics kick off in Paris on Aug. 28. It’s the first time all 22 Paralympic events will be aired live, and total broadcast revenues are up by more than 20% from the delayed 2020 Paralympics. Chuck Aoki, an American Paralympic wheelchair rugby player, said content creators like himself are also bringing eyes to the event. On the show today, Aoki breaks down the basics of wheelchair rugby (aka “murderball”), the system that classifies para athletes based on their disability, and why this year’s Paralympics are getting more buzz than ever.

Then, we’ll get into how pharmaceutical companies’ new direct-to-consumer programs could impact drug prices. And, listeners tell us about the trafficless 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, and a lesson in credit cards learned the hard, heartbreaking way.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

“Passion And Guts: Chuck Aoki’s World of Wheelchair Rugby” from Team USA

“Paralympic Games in Paris set to reach largest audience after broadcast deals” from The Guardian

“What sports are in the Paralympics and how does the classification system work?” from AP News

“How to Watch the 2024 Summer Paralympics: Streaming Schedule, Free Options” from Wired

“Pfizer Follows Lilly With Website Selling Directly to Patients” from Bloomberg

“Eli Lilly lowering weight loss drug prices” from The Hill

“Health Insurance Costs Will Rise Steeply if Premium Tax Credit Improvements Expire” from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

“How Much and Why ACA Marketplace Premiums Are Going Up in 2025” from KFF

“Pfizer launches new website for migraine, respiratory offerings” from Reuters

“Panama Canal Eases Limits That Caused Global Shipping Bottleneck” from Bloomberg

We want to hear your answer to the Make Me Smart question. Leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART or email us at makemesmart@marketplace.org.

The supermarket supermerger heads to court Aug 26, 2024

Show notes

The trial weighing the merger of Kroger and Albertsons, two grocery titans, begins today. We’ll explain what the biggest supermarket merger in U.S. history could mean for everyday shoppers and why the federal government wants to put a stop to it. Plus, we’ll get into the latest of Boeing’s woes: its Starliner spacecraft. Can the company’s failures teach us something about the business of spaceflight? And, SpaceX is ready to launch a mission for the first-ever commercial spacewalk.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

“What Kroger-Albertsons merger trial with FTC means for your grocery store” from The Washington Post

“New Boeing CEO Faces Hard Choices After NASA Snubs Starliner for SpaceX” from Bloomberg

“Flight attendants speak out about low pay, debt and homelessness” from The Washington Post

“IUD insertion pain is complicated. Doctors say the new CDC guidelines are only a start.” from NBC News

“Here’s What the CDC’s New IUD Pain Management Recommendations Mean in Practice” from Self

“SpaceX to Launch Billionaire on First-Ever Private Spacewalk” from Bloomberg

We love to hear from you. Email your comments and questions to makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

The Democratic Party’s billionaire whiplash Aug 24, 2024

Show notes

The Democratic National Convention this week featured a wide range of speakers, from those who railed against the billionaire class to billionaires themselves. We’ll unpack the Democratic Party’s mixed messaging on the ultrawealthy. On the other hand, the world’s central banks seem to be on the same page when it comes to interest rates. We’ll get into it. Plus, how much would you pay for a full row of economy seats on an airplane? We’ll find out during a game of Half Full/Half Empty!

Here’s everything we talked about today:

“Major Central Banks Now Aligned as Powell Signals Fed Cuts Ahead” from Bloomberg

“At the DNC, Kamala Harris has a billionaire problem on her hands” from Fortune

“On the Convention Stage, Democrats Courted the Middle Class. After Hours, They Partied Like the 1%.” from The Wall Street Journal

“Hanif Abdurraqib on what it means to “make it'” from Marketplace’s “This Is Uncomfortable”

“What it’s like to be a content creator at the DNC” from Marketplace Tech

“No Joke: The Onion Thinks Print Is the Future of Media” from The New York Times

“Does lipstick still have economic staying power?” from Marketplace

“All the Airlines Offering ‘Couch’ Seats for More Space to Spread Out” from Thrillist

“Starbucks fall drinks 2024: Pumpkin Spice Latte, fall menu launch Thursday” from Axios

Kick off your weekend with our our “Tunes on Tap” Spotify playlist featuring some of our favorite summer jams! Get the playlist here: marketplace.org/playlist.

Harris’ hazy plan to ban price gouging Aug 22, 2024

Show notes

Since Vice President Harris proposed a federal ban on price gouging in the food and grocery industries, her campaign has offered up few details about what the policy would actually look like. That’s left room for wild speculation. We’ll get into it. And, we’ll debunk former President Trump’s claims that the Biden administration manipulated job data to influence the election. Plus, the future of V2X technology on our roadways and the National Women’s Soccer League’s historic move to do away with drafts.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

“And today Trump and his allies are being dishonest about jobs data” from The Washington Post

“US job totals will likely be revised down by 818,000 as Trump cries fraud” from Politico

“Commerce Sec. Raimondo on VP Harris: She’s pro-business, pro-worker, and opposed to price-fixing” from CNBC

“FTC to investigate high grocery prices” from Marketplace

“Harris’s Price-Gouging Ban: Price Controls or No Quick Effect?” from The New York Times

“DOT plans to implement V2X technology raise privacy concerns” from Marketplace

“The U.S. Sports League That Just Scrapped the Draft—and Made Everyone a Free Agent” from The Wall Street Journal

“National Women’s Soccer League and its players agree to a new contract deal” from NPR

Join us tomorrow for Economics on Tap. The YouTube livestream starts at 3:30 p.m. Pacific time, 6:30 p.m. Eastern.

Let’s decode Fed speak Aug 22, 2024

Show notes

We read the minutes from the Federal Reserve’s last meeting so you don’t have to! Kai Ryssdal explains why an interest rate cut in September is looking more and more likely. Plus, how the Ozempic boom is changing the cost of workplace insurance plans. And, Chicago’s hottest dance club is at the … Democratic National Convention?!

Here’s everything we talked about today:

1. “Minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee” from the Federal Reserve

“Workplace insurance could soon be stripped down” from Axios

“The FTC’s noncompete agreements ban is blocked” from The Verge

“The DNC roll call featured a musical salute to each state. Here’s what your state chose” from NPR

“‘Crowd’ size 📏 “ from Politico

Kimberly Adams is headed to Denver on Sept. 23 for a live Marketplace event all about the economics of being single! You can find details about it here.

The new wave of private school vouchers Aug 21, 2024

Show notes

For decades, private school vouchers, often referred to as school choice programs, were limited to low-income students. But recently, several states have passed universal voucher programs that any family, regardless of income, can use to pay their kids’ private school tuition. On the show today, Huriya Jabbar, professor of education policy at the University of Southern California’s Rossier School of Education, explains the history of private school vouchers, what makes the latest wave of these programs different from traditional school vouchers, and why some believe private school vouchers undermine the purpose of public education in the U.S. Plus, what does Milton Friedman have to do with all of this?

Then, Kai Ryssdal explains the ins and outs of how the Bureau of Labor Statistics revises its job data. And, we’ll hear from listeners about free garden seeds and American soccer in the ’70s.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

1. “Millions of campaign dollars aimed at tilting school voucher battle are flowing into state races” from AP News

“Arizona School Voucher Program Causes Budget Meltdown” from ProPublica

“Public Funding, Private Education” from The New York Times

“The new and radical school voucher push is quietly unwinding two centuries of U.S. education tradition” from the Brookings Institution

“Which States Have Private School Choice?” from Education Week

“Georgia election board approves another rule that could disrupt certification” from WABE

“Election Deniers Secretly Pushed Rule That Would Make It Easier to Delay Certification of Georgia’s Election Results” from ProPublica

“Fed Confronts Up to a Million US Jobs Vanishing in Revision” from Bloomberg

We want to hear your answer to the Make Me Smart question. Leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART or email us at makemesmart@marketplace.org.

An increasingly anxious U.S. labor market Aug 20, 2024

Show notes

New survey data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York shows that the percentage of Americans who expect to get laid off in the next four months has gone up. On the other hand, the share of Americans who expect to get a job offer in the next four months is also up. So what gives? We’ll get into the labor market unease and why the Federal Reserve will be paying close attention. Then, we’ll smile about a new tool that could help prevent death from life threatening injuries.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

“Expectation of Losing One’s Job at Record High in NY Fed Survey” from Bloomberg

“More and more Americans are worried they will lose their job” from CNN Business

“US FDA clears use of Cresilon’s gel to stop severe bleeding in seconds” from Reuters

Tweet from Jesse Byrnes about errors in the Democratic Party’s 2024 platform

We love to hear from you. Email your comments and questions to makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

The complicated and costly challenge of rebuilding Gaza Aug 17, 2024

Show notes

Since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, 70% of Gaza’s housing has been damaged, crucial infrastructure like schools and hospitals have been destroyed, and millions of Palestinians have been displaced. We’ll get into the logistical and economic challenge of reconstructing the Gaza Strip. And, we’ll explain why certain proposals coming out of the Harris campaign may be popular with voters but not so popular with economists. Plus, we’ll play a round of Half Full/Half Empty!

Here’s everything we talked about today: