Freakonomics Radio

  • Why Rent Control Doesn’t Work (Ep. 373 Rebroadcast)

    As cities become ever-more expensive, politicians and housing advocates keep calling for rent control. Economists think that’s a terrible idea. They say it helps a small (albeit noisy) group of renters, but keeps overall rents…


  • 408. Does Anyone Really Know What Socialism Is?

    Trump says it would destroy us. Sanders says it will save us. The majority of millennials would like it to replace capitalism. But what is “it”? We bring in the economists to sort things out…


  • 407. Is There Really a “Loneliness Epidemic”?

    That’s what some health officials are saying, but the data aren’t so clear. We look into what’s known (and not known) about the prevalence and effects of loneliness — including the possible upsides.


  • 406. Can You Hear Me Now?

    When he became chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Ajit Pai announced that he was going to take a “weed whacker” to Obama-era regulations. So far, he’s kept his promise, and earned the internet’s ire…


  • 405. Policymaking Is Not a Science (Yet)

    Why do so many promising solutions — in education, medicine, criminal justice, etc. — fail to scale up into great policy? And can a new breed of “implementation scientists” crack the code?


  • 404. Does the President Matter as Much as You Think?

    We asked this same question nearly a decade ago. The answer then: probably not. But a lot has changed since then, and we’re three years into one of the most anomalous presidencies in American history.…


  • How the San Francisco 49ers Stopped Being Losers (Ep. 350 Update)

    One of the most storied (and valuable) sports franchises in the world had fallen far. So they decided to do a full reboot — and it worked: this week, they are headed back to the…


  • 403. The Opioid Tragedy, Part 2: “It’s Not a Death Sentence”

    One prescription drug is keeping some addicts from dying. So why isn’t it more widespread? A story of regulation, stigma, and the potentially fatal faith in abstinence.


  • 402. The Opioid Tragedy, Part 1: “We’ve Addicted an Entire Generation”

    How pharma greed, government subsidies, and a push to make pain the “fifth vital sign” kicked off a crisis that costs $80 billion a year and has killed hundreds of thousands of Americans.


  • 5 Psychology Terms You’re Probably Misusing (Rebroadcast)

    We all like to throw around terms that describe human behavior — “bystander apathy” and “steep learning curve” and “hard-wired.” Most of the time, they don’t actually mean what we think they mean. But don’t…