Make Me Smart

Latest Episodes:

What is an economy of caution? Mar 04, 2025

Show notes

Today, we’re talking about one of Kai’s favorite topics: bonds! The yield on the 10-year Treasury note (the benchmark for mortgages and car loans) is down sharply, which is great for consumers. But it’s happening for not necessarily great reasons. We’ll explain. Plus, why Kimberly is keeping a close eye on one of her go-to government websites. And, she’ll share tales from her trip to Venice’s famed carnival.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

“Key Interest Rate Falls as Worries About the Economy Rise” from The New York Times

“RFK Jr. moves to eliminate public comment on HHS decisions” by STAT

“RFK Jr. move to kill public comment roils providers” from Axios

“AP PHOTOS: Venice Carnival opens with biodegradable streamers and an ode to Casanova” by AP News

Got a question or comment for the hosts? Email makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

What the Trump-Zelenskyy meeting says about the world economic order Mar 01, 2025

Show notes

A meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and U.S. President Donald Trump today dissolved into a heated argument in the Oval Office, flipping the switch of the global economic order. Kai Ryssdal and guest host Nova Safo discuss what they took away from the contentious meeting and what it might mean for American-style capitalism. Plus, we’ll shift gears and play a lively round of Half Full/Half Empty!

Here’s everything we talked about today:

“Trump, Vance castigate Zelensky in tense Oval Office meeting” from CNN Politics

“Microsoft Will Shut Down Skype in Favor of a Free Version of Teams” from The New York Times

“‘Jeopardy!’ and ‘Wheel of Fortune’ to Leap to Streaming” from The New York Times

“Why are tech companies investing in quantum computing?” from Marketplace

“Why some authors and publishers are nixing book blurbs” from Marketplace

“Lately, the scoop on the bond market is like ice cream roulette” from Marketplace

“How much impact could a 24-hour “economic blackout” have?” from Marketplace

Got a question or comment for the hosts? Email makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

Whaddya wanna know about federal layoffs and this economy? Feb 28, 2025

Show notes

On today’s episode, we make you smarter by answering your pressing questions about this economy: Will cuts to the federal workforce make any difference to the unemployment rate? Also, have we all been totally oblivious to a private sector recession? (Spoiler: No!) We’ll explain. Plus, listeners sound off on smile-worthy moments from their week!

Here’s everything we talked about today:

“How Will Shrinking the Federal Workforce Impact the Labor Market?” from Wells Fargo

“How DOGE cuts might show up in the data” by Axios

“Unemployment is still low, but are private sector layoffs accelerating?” from Marketplace

“Many laid-off government workers aren’t eligible for unemployment” from Marketplace

“US Treasury’s Bessent vows to re-privatize an economy that is ‘brittle underneath’” by Reuters

“ADP® National Employment Report” from ADP Research

“Employment by industry, monthly changes” from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

“Governments at all levels are hiring, and that’s boosting the job market” by Marketplace

“The Federal Reserve’s favorite recession indicator is flashing a danger sign again” from CNBC

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

An asteroid miss and the WaPo opinion shift Feb 27, 2025

Show notes

Kai has been tracking news about a giant asteroid heading toward Earth. NASA says we’re safe, for now! But first, the hosts discuss troubling trends in the news business and a shift in who gets to exert control over media narratives. And, we’re keeping a close eye on growing fears over possible layoffs.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

“US Workers Cite Growing Layoff Fear in Philadelphia Fed Survey” from Bloomberg

“White House takes control of press pool that covers Trump” by BBC

“Washington Post opinion editor departs as Bezos pushes to promote ‘personal liberties and free markets’” by The Guardian

“Costa Rica Is Saving Forest Ecosystems by Listening to Them” from Wired

“NASA Gives ‘All Clear’ for Asteroid That Seemed to Threaten Earth” by The New York Times

Got a question or comment for the hosts? Email makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

“Unlocking the Gates” on housing and economic opportunity Feb 25, 2025

Show notes

Today, we’re sharing the first episode of “Unlocking the Gates,” a series from Marketplace and APM Studios hosted by special correspondent Lee Hawkins. He tells the story of how the Minnesota suburb he grew up in went from being a place where the housing market was inaccessible to Black families to one where many Black families found economic opportunity. And it all started with a nighttime business deal.

Is Apple actually going “America First”? Feb 25, 2025

Show notes

A week after Apple CEO Tim Cook met with President Donald Trump, the company said today that it plans to invest $500 billion in the U.S. over the next four years. Is Apple aligning with Trump’s America First agenda? We’ll explain why Apple’s domestic investment isn’t what you may think it is. Plus, how would you respond to an email from your boss with the subject line: “What did you do last week?” And, a big thank you to Tammy from Oregon for today’s Make Me Smile moment.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

“Apple’s $500 Billion U.S. Investment Is Mostly Already in the Books” from The Wall Street Journal

“Elon Musk Tells Federal Workers to Detail Work in an Email or Lose Their Jobs” by The New York Times

“Are federal workers lazy? Let’s look at the data.” from The Washington Post

“The Long Flight to Teach an Endangered Ibis Species to Migrate” from The New Yorker

“The Trump administration tells agencies they could ignore Musk order on email reply” from The Washington Post (latest developments after we recorded today’s episode)

Got a question or comment for the hosts? Email makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

A brewing legal battle and the future of the Fed Feb 22, 2025

Show notes

The Supreme Court on Friday chose not to intervene in a case involving President Donald Trump’s firing of an independent agency head. As the case is passed back to the lower courts, it tees up a legal battle that will test the president’s power to dismiss officials. We’ll get into what this could all mean for the Federal Reserve. And, U.S. national parks are being hit by the administration’s purge of the federal workforce. Plus, we’ll weigh in on Birkenstocks, prebiotic sodas and the “White Lotus effect” during a round of Half Full/Half Empty!

Here’s everything we talked about today:

“Supreme Court Declines for Now to Let Trump Fire Agency Head” from Bloomberg

Post on Bluesky about national park closures

“Trump administration backtracks on eliminating thousands of national parks employees” from The L.A. Times

“Firings Squeeze National Parks: ‘You Won’t Have the Full Experience’” from The New York Times

“Can sandals be art? Birkenstock says yes, but a German court says no” from AP News

“‘Gut Pop’ Is Injecting New Fizz Into the Beverage Aisle” from The Wall Street Journal

“Politics are changing how and where consumers spend” from Marketplace

“The ‘White Lotus effect’ on tourism” from Marketplace

“Amazon Gains Creative Control Over the James Bond Franchise” from The New York Times

Got a question or comment for the hosts? Email makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

DOGE’s next target: IRS Feb 21, 2025

Show notes

Things are getting tense at the Internal Revenue Service. Layoffs are looming smack in the middle of tax season as part of DOGE’s mission to cut the federal workforce. Meanwhile, the commerce secretary says President Donald Trump wants to abolish the agency altogether. Get ready for a Kai rant! Plus, Trump wants to know if there’s still gold at Ft. Knox. No, really! And, finally, we’ll smile about all the good things that have happened to you lately.

Here’s everything we talked about:

“Joint Chiefs Chairman CQ Brown on list to be possibly removed by Hegseth” by ABC News

“Commerce Secretary Lutnick: Trump’s goal is to abolish the IRS” from Axios

“I.R.S. to Begin Laying Off Roughly 6,000 Employees on Thursday” from The New York Times

Watch: “Trump wants to know if there’s gold in Fort Knox” by AP News

Watch: “Fmr. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on U.S. gold reserves at Fort Knox” from CNBC Television

“What to know about Fort Knox’s gold depository that Musk wants audited” from Axios

“A campus sign said, ‘Tell us something good.’ Students delivered.” by 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.

Is recession risk rising? Feb 20, 2025

Show notes

A growing number of young American consumers say they’re opting out of the economy entirely or pulling back from spending at certain stores over their political views. We’ll explain how this trend could collide with other economic shifts, creating the perfect recipe for a recession. Plus, by popular demand, we unpack a recent feat of nature: beavers successfully taking on civil engineering!

Here’s everything we talked about:

“Kremlin Message to Trump: There’s Money to Be Made in Russia” from The New York Times

“A quarter of US shoppers have dumped favorite stores over political stances” by The Guardian

“NAACP calls for consumers to leverage their purchasing power as some companies pull back from DEI policies” from Marketplace

“Black faith leaders call for Target boycott over DEI rollback” from The Hill

“Czech Dam Project Was Stalled by Bureaucracy. Beavers Built Their Own.” from The New York Times

Got a question or comment for the hosts? Email makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

Should we be worried about bird flu? Feb 18, 2025

Show notes

Today we’re talking about bird flu. It’s infecting flocks of chickens, causing egg prices to rise across the country, plus herds of dairy cattle and people are getting sick too. And all of this is happening amid sweeping changes at U.S. federal health agencies.

The Trump administration has ordered mass firings and limits on public communications at agencies including the Centers for Disease Control, hindering its ability to keep the public informed.

“There are a lot of emerging and ongoing infectious disease events that require a very active, highly communicative public health agency like the CDC, and we’re just not getting that,” said Jessica Malaty Rivera, an epidemiologist and science communicator.

On the show today, Malaty Rivera explains the scale of the current bird flu outbreak, how the response in the United States has been disrupted by chaos in the federal government, and why state health systems may struggle to fill the gaps after years of underfunding.

Plus, for one listener, doing something is better than nothing. And, another listener shares how they changed their mind about the value of government work.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

“Urgent CDC Data and Analyses on Influenza and Bird Flu Go Missing as Outbreaks Escalate” from KFF Health News

“Mass firings at HHS: Thousands impacted across federal health agencies including CMS, FDA” from Fierce Healthcare

“RFK Jr. confirmed, elevating anti-vaccine activist to nation’s top health post” from The Washington Post

“How Trump’s Medical Research Cuts Would Hit Colleges and Hospitals in Every State” from The New York Times

“The U.S. and the WHO: An Imperfect but Essential Relationship” from Johns Hopkins

What’s something you thought you knew but later found out you were wrong about? Email makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

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