The blog ends, but the podcast continues! For a short while, anyway. Thanks Jon, for doing such an awesome job. I love this (most likely, apocryphal) story: So, Henry Ford one day was taking Walter Reuther, the United Auto Workers president, on a tour of a newly automated Ford plant that had replaced many of [...]

Harry Markopolos, the man who tried futilely for 10 years to expose the largest Ponzi scheme in history, has written a book about his failed crusade called “No One Would Listen: A True Financial Thriller.” In it, Markopolos relives his tragic tale, how he discovered Bernard Madoff was a fraud, how he tried for years [...]

Some of you have no doubt seen the “Fear the Boom and Bust” video featuring the rap stylings of economists John Maynard Keynes and Friedrich von Hayek, two economists with diametrically opposed viewpoints. To put the dispute in its most simplistic terms, Keynes thought government intervention was the only way out of economic downturns, and Hayek…not so much. (Think Paul Krugman vs. Ron Paul to get a picture of two contemporary acolytes of these schools of thought.)

In Wikipedia’s entry on Keynes, the section “Economics: out of favour 1979–2007” is followed by Economics: the Keynesian resurgence of 2008–2009.

Others may be cutting back, but the EconomyBeat Podcast is growing! On this episode we have a full hour of economy stories from independent and station based producers compiled, curated and constructed by the fine folks at Michigan Radio. From a story about a family living on a beach, to a former GM employee looking [...]

In this episode of EconomyBeat, we have stories from people who have a very specific niche jobs, which is often a good game plan in tough times. Do something you love and something unique, and you’re probably better off than most of us. The person you will hear from in this story is KellyAnne, and [...]

Today on the podcast: be afraid! Fear turns out be a very good thing for certain businesses. When the Weather Service warns of a hurricane, there’s a run on plywood and water. A crime spree sends people to the gun store. And when North Korea or Iran starts making nuclear noise, the orders pour in [...]

In this episode of the EconomyBeat Podcast, I thought we’d take a break from the banker, broker, speculator type of con man who torpedoed the economy and focus on the much more charming street con man who provides such rich grist for our Hollywood movies. In three-card monte, con artists use swift hand moves and [...]

In this episode, we’re going to put the poets out front to report the economic news. Lu Olkowski’s  “In Verse” – is a multimedia reporting project combining poetry, interviews, and photography. This installment takes us to Troy, New York. Long, long ago Troy was a thriving manufacturing town. These days, as you will find out, [...]

If you’ve been thinking of buying or selling a home, you may find The Housing Helix podcast by Jonathan Miller, who runs a real estate appraisal firm, of some use. He interviews a lot of real estate professionals, and mostly covers the New York City metro region. (Check here for an archive of his company’s [...]

There are more than 150 cash strapped communities throughout the US that are making their own money. I mean that literally, they are printing their own currency to be used locally. The bad news is you can’t use it at Wal-Mart. The good news is you can’t use it at Wal-Mart. And surprisingly, this is not illegal. It’s all in an effort to keep money circulating exclusively in the local economy when the federal currency is too busy being locked up in a bank vault. WAMU’s Rebecca Sheir has the story.