Freakonomics.

Freakonomics Radio is a public radio program from the United States that explores social and economic topics for a broad audience. This show is based on the 2005 book Freakonomics and is hosted by journalist Stephen Dubner, with economist Steven Levitt frequently appearing as a guest. Available as a podcast, it ranks among the top offerings on iTunes. Launched in September 2010, the podcast is released weekly and is produced in collaboration with WNYC, with Arwa Gunja serving as the Executive Producer. The team behind Freakonomics Radio includes Greg Rosalsky, Jay Cowit, Merritt Jacob, Christopher Werth, Kasia Mychajlowycz, Alison Hockenberry, and Caroline English. New episodes are available every Wednesday at 11 p.m.

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How to Help Kids Succeed

1 week ago | freakonomics.com | Steven D. Levitt

Between teaching for 25 years and having a whole bunch of kids, I spent a lot of time around young people. I thought I had a pretty good idea of how to motivate them. Then I met today’s guest, David Yeager, and I realized, like most people, I’ve been doing all wrong. YEAGER: If you can tap into that desire for status and respect then I think we can unleash this powerful source of intelligence and this powerful source for good in our culture. Welcome to People I (Mostly) Admire, with Steve Levitt.
An Economics Lesson from a Talking Pencil (Update)

2 weeks ago | freakonomics.com | Stephen Dubner

Episode Transcript Hey there, it’s Stephen Dubner. We’ve all been hearing a lot lately about international trade and especially the restrictions on trade, in the form of tariffs.
Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Manifesto for a Gift Economy

3 weeks ago | freakonomics.com | Steven D. Levitt

My guest today, Robin Wall Kimmerer, is a botanist who combines scientific methodologies with indigenous practices to study the natural world in a more holistic way. She sees the world a bit differently than the typical guest I have on this show. KIMMERER: What I marvel at is the economy of nature, where the wealth is diversity, clean water, and bird song. And it’s this disconnect between the biophysical laws of how ecosystems work and how market economics work.
Fireworks Shows - Freakonomics

3 weeks ago | freakonomics.com | Zachary Crockett

Every year, on the Fourth of July, millions of people in towns and cities across the United States watch the night sky light up with explosives in all different patterns and colors. For many Americans, the fireworks show is a highlight of the summer — a source of wonder and awe. But the guys in charge of coordinating and launching them are usually more nervous than excited. BRAU: It is a lot of pressure on the Fourth of July when you’re out there. That’s JJ Brau.
Does Death Have to Be a Death Sentence? (Update)

4 weeks ago | freakonomics.com | Steven D. Levitt

Today’s episode is an encore presentation of a conversation I had with B.J. Miller way back in 2021. B.J. Miller is a physician who specializes in end-of-life care. You might expect an episode on dying to be depressing, but I suspect you will find that B.J. Miller is such an extraordinary human being that this episode is anything but depressing. For me, this is one of the most uplifting episodes we’ve ever done. * * * If there’s one topic that nobody wants to talk about, it’s death.
“Fault-Finder Is a Minimum-Wage Job”

1 month ago | freakonomics.com | Stephen Dubner |Austan D. Goolsbee |Steven D. Levitt |Chad Syverson

Episode Transcript I first met the economist Austan Goolsbee around 20 years ago. I was out at the University of Chicago, spending time with another Chicago economist, Steve Levitt, who would become my Freakonomics friend and co-author. Levitt could be shy and soft-spoken; Goolsbee was neither.
Pearls - Freakonomics

1 month ago | freakonomics.com | Zachary Crockett

Episode Transcript Back in the 1990s, while working as a flight attendant, Jeremy Shepherd made an impulsive purchase that would change the course of his life. SHEPHERD: I was on layover in China, and there is a market there, the Hongqiao Sherchang in Beijing. It’s a market where flight attendants used to go to buy anything from knockoff purses to clothing. There was an entire floor of pearls.
Why Did Rome Fall — and Are We Next? - Freakonomics

1 month ago | freakonomics.com | Steven D. Levitt |Tom Holland |Jens Ludwig

If you think history’s boring, chances are that you’ve never listened to today’s guest, Tom Holland. He’s a best-selling author and co-host of the ultra-popular podcast, The Rest is History. I’m not exactly sure how they do it, but he and his co-host, Dominic Sandbrook, can find a way to make just about any historical event fascinating.
The Most Powerful People You’ve Never Heard Of

1 month ago | freakonomics.com | Stephen Dubner |Daniel Ammann |Javier Blas

For the past couple years, I’ve been letting a very good book collect dust on my shelf. A friend had told me about the book, and I did read the introduction — a wild introduction, about the C.E.O. of a British company who flies his private jet into the middle of the Libyan civil war to make an oil deal with the rebel army, an army which happened to have the covert support of the governments of Britain, Qatar, and the U.S. So, yeah, I probably should have kept reading.
Little League (Replay)

1 month ago | freakonomics.com | Zachary Crockett

Episode Transcript Growing up in the early 1990s, R.J. Mackenzie’s life revolved around baseball. And in his hometown of Pomona, New York, it was all about Little League. R.J. MACKENZIE: Little League was, like, the thing. That’s what we all looked forward to. It was just the focal point of the community. That’s where everybody went in the spring. And you lived and died with whatever team you played on.