Synopsis
The economy, explained, with stories and surprises. Imagine you could call up a friend and say, "Meet me at the bar and tell me what's going on with the economy." Now imagine that's actually a fun evening. That's what we're going for at Planet Money. People seem to like it.
Episodes
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How the cookie became a monster
19/11/2022 Duration: 26min30 years ago, Lou Montulli set out to solve a fundamental problem with the internet, and accidentally created an entirely different one. On today's show, how the cookie went from an obscure piece of code designed to protect anonymity, to an online advertiser's dream, to a privacy advocate's nightmare.Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney
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Sam Bankman-Fried and the fall of a crypto empire
17/11/2022 Duration: 23minSam Bankman-Fried built a reputation as the one reliable crypto bro. But within the span of days, his empire came crashing down. What the rise and fall of crypto's 30-year-old elder statesman says about the story of crypto so far.Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney
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The E-Book Wars
11/11/2022 Duration: 25minIn 2019, a group of librarians (quietly) stormed the offices of a major publisher, Macmillan, to protest a controversial policy on e-books. On this show, how a tiny change - a book on a screen - threw an industry into war with itself.Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoneya
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Peak Sand (classic)
09/11/2022 Duration: 17minSand. It's in buildings, windows, your cell phone. But there isn't enough in the world for everyone. And that's created a dangerous black market.Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney
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Planet Money tries election polling
04/11/2022 Duration: 28minPolling is facing an existential crisis. Few people are answering the phone, and fewer people want to answer surveys. On today's show, we pick up the phones ourselves to find out how polling got to this place, and what the future of the poll looks like.Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney
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Two Indicators shaking China's economy
02/11/2022 Duration: 19minXi Jinping recently secured his third term as China's president – so we're looking at two shocks to the world's second-largest economy. First: How China's housing boom turned into a real estate crisis. Second: How the recent U.S. ban on selling advanced semiconductor chips to China could affect China's technology industry.
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Planet Money Records Vol. 2: The Negotiation
29/10/2022 Duration: 26minWe got our hands on the long-lost "Inflation" song, and now it's time to put it out into the world. So, we started a record label, and we're diving into the music business to try and make a hit.This is part two of the Planet Money Records series. Here's part one and part three.Update: We now have merch! We released a line of Inflation song gear — including a limited edition vinyl record; a colorful, neon hoodie; and 70s-inspired stickers. You can find it here: n.pr/shopplanetmoney.Listen to "Inflation" on Apple Music, Spotify, YouTube Music, Tidal, Amazon Music & Pandora.Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney
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Planet Money Records Vol. 1: Earnest Jackson
27/10/2022 Duration: 25minWe try to start a real record label. Just to put one song out there. It's a song about inflation, recorded in 1975... and never released. Until now.This is part one of the Planet Money Records series. Here's part two and part three.Update: We now have merch! We released a line of Inflation song gear — including a limited edition vinyl record; a colorful, neon hoodie; and 70s-inspired stickers. You can find it here: n.pr/shopplanetmoney.Listen to "Inflation" on Apple Music, Spotify, YouTube Music, Tidal, Amazon Music & Pandora.Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney
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The high cost of a strong dollar
22/10/2022 Duration: 27minWhen it comes to international trade and finance, everyone pretty much speaks one language: the U.S. dollar. So when the Federal Reserve hikes interest rates and the dollar suddenly gets strong, it can cause huge headaches all over the world.Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney
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The money fixers (classic)
19/10/2022 Duration: 17minHow do you mend a broken bill? On this classic episode, we visit the Mutilated Currency Division.Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney
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You asked for coupons, Delaware, and the truth about goldfish
15/10/2022 Duration: 23minOn today's show, we're answering listener questions from the Planet Money inbox. Like, who really benefits from retail coupons? And why are goldfish so cheap?Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney
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Two Indicators: back to school
12/10/2022 Duration: 17minIt's fall, so on this episode, we're taking you back to school. First, what sorority rush can teach us about a particular kind of market. Then, how two economists fixed the way macroeconomics was taught in high schools. It's econ, inside and outside the classroom.Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney
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Forging Taiwan's Silicon Shield
07/10/2022 Duration: 30minTaiwan is at the center of a global feud. Its main defense may be what some call its "Silicon Shield" — its powerful semiconductor industry. On today's show, the story of how one economic hero helped to transform Taiwan's economy and create the "Taiwan Miracle."Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney
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Economic anarchy in the UK
05/10/2022 Duration: 21minLiz Truss, the new Prime Minister of the UK, was determined to change the British economy. Instead, her government's mini-budget helped kick off a mini-financial crisis.Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney
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Would you like a side of offshoring with that?
30/09/2022 Duration: 22minA lot of restaurants took a hit during the pandemic. And when they struggled to find workers, some found surprising solutions. On today's show, what happens when you offshore cashiers.Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney
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The miracle apple (Classic)
28/09/2022 Duration: 13minToday on the show, how we got from mealy, nasty apples to apples that taste delicious. The story starts with a breeder who discovered a miracle apple. But discovering that apple wasn't enough.
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Econ's Brush with the Law
23/09/2022 Duration: 22minWhat happens when you take some of the most powerful people in America — federal judges — and teach them economics? We look at the swanky econ retreats that may have changed American law forever.Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.
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The Midnight Connection
21/09/2022 Duration: 33minTexas's energy grid is largely disconnected from the rest of the U.S. That led to disastrous consequences last year when the state's grid was overloaded during a winter storm. Back in the 1970s, one company attempted to change the system in a secret, middle-of-the-night operation. Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney
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Vibecession Vibes Session
17/09/2022 Duration: 26minWe're not in a recession, but why are the vibes feeling so off? We put the question to an economist and one expert on "vibes" and also hire a jazz band to take a pun way too far.Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney
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The Good, the Bad, and the Uggly
15/09/2022 Duration: 30minEddie Oygur is an Australian businessman who's sold sheepskin ugg boots for years. But one day, he was hit with a lawsuit for breaking American trademark law. On today's show — what's in the name ugg? Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.