Freakonomics Radio

  • 600. “If We’re All in It for Ourselves, Who Are We?”

    Tania Tetlow, a former federal prosecutor and now the president of Fordham University, thinks the modern campus could use a dose of old-fashioned values.   SOURCE: Tania Tetlow, president of Fordham University.   RESOURCES: “Not…


  • 599. The World’s Most Valuable Unused Resource

    It’s not oil or water or plutonium — it’s human hours. We’ve got an idea for putting them to use, and for building a more human-centered economy. But we need your help.   SOURCES: Nathan…


  • EXTRA: Why Rent Control Doesn’t Work (Update)

    A new proposal from the Biden administration calls for a nationwide cap on rent increases. Economists think that’s a terrible idea. We revisit a 2019 episode to hear why.   SOURCES: Tommy Andersson, professor of…


  • 598. Is Overconsolidation a Threat to Democracy?

    That’s the worry. Even the humble eyeglass industry is dominated by a single firm.  We look into the global spike in myopia, how the Lemtosh got its name, and what your eye doctor knows that…


  • 597. Why Do Your Eyeglasses Cost $1,000?

    A single company, EssilorLuxottica, owns so much of the eyewear industry that it’s hard to escape their gravitational pull — or their “obscene” markups. Should regulators do something? Can Warby Parker steal market share? And…


  • EXTRA: People Aren’t Dumb. The World Is Hard. (Update)

    You wouldn’t think you could win a Nobel Prize for showing that humans tend to make irrational decisions. But that’s what Richard Thaler has done. In an interview from 2018, the founder of behavioral economics…


  • 596. Farewell to a Generational Talent

    Daniel Kahneman left his mark on academia (and the real world) in countless ways. A group of his friends and colleagues recently gathered in Chicago to reflect on this legacy — and we were there,…


  • 595. Why Don’t We Have Better Candidates for President?

    American politics is trapped in a duopoly, with two all-powerful parties colluding to stifle competition. We revisit a 2018 episode to explain how the political industry works, and talk to a reformer (and former presidential…


  • 594. Your Brand’s Spokesperson Just Got Arrested — Now What?

    It’s hard to know whether the benefits of hiring a celebrity are worth the risk. We dig into one gruesome story of an endorsement gone wrong, and find a surprising result.   SOURCES: John Cawley,…


  • 593. You Can Make a Killing, but Not a Living

    Broadway operates on a winner-take-most business model. A runaway hit like Stereophonic — which just won five Tony Awards — will create a few big winners. But even the stars of the show will have…