EconoFact Chats

The move to remote learning in high schools and kindergartens has proved among the more pervasive disruptions of COVID-19. Hardest hit have been those without access to technology, or adequate places to do schoolwork at home -- a group in which low-income students and students of color are overrepresented. While the government has made resources available to school districts to address learning di...

James Stock, professor at Harvard University, and a former member of the Council of Economic Advisers joins EconoFact Chats this week to discuss the role of economic policy in slowing climate change. Jim argues that declining green energy prices are leading to a fundamental shift in the economic thinking around climate policy -- with the key question no longer 'how can we make it more expensive to...

Julia Coronado, president and founder of MacroPolicy Perspectives, joins EconoFact Chats this week to describe how she and her team organize their thinking and analysis of the U.S. economy at a time when the pandemic has disrupted the conventional models and rules of thumb that forecasters traditionally use.

Former Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under President Obama, Jason Furman joins EconoFact Chats this week to discuss the economy’s emergence from the COVID-19 recession.

David Deming (Harvard) discusses why manufacturing jobs are no longer a straightforward path to the middle class, and why greater investments in public colleges can help more people get well-paying jobs in a changing economy.

With over 1 in 7 children living in poverty in 2019, the United States is an outlier among rich nations. It doesn't have to be this way, according to University of California, Berkeley professor Hilary Hoynes.

Adam Posen, president of the Peterson Institute for International Economics lays out evidence for the U.S.'s retreat from globalization, and its potential consequences.

COVID-driven lockdowns contributed to a sharp drop in the rates of many types of crime, although the rates of some crimes, such as homicides, increased in 2020. Drawing on his original research, Professor David Abrams (University of Pennsylvania) speaks to Michael Klein about these divergent trends.

A discussion with Matt Kahn, director of Johns Hopkins' 21st Century Cities Initiative on what causes some cities to grow, while others shrink.

Since Roosevelt coined the phrase in 1933, 'the first 100 days' has become a benchmark to gauge the early success of a president. As the Biden Administration concludes its first 100 days, EconoFact Chats draws on a panel of distinguished economic journalists, Binyamin Appelbaum of the New York Times, Scott Horsley of NPR, Greg Ip of the Wall Street Journal and Heather Long of the Washington Post,...

Eric Rosengren, the President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston is the longest serving regional Fed President and has been at the helm through the 2007 financial crisis and the coronavirus pandemic. In this episode of EconoFact Chats, Eric discusses his perspective on the most immediate financial stability issues that the COVID crisis revealed and ways to address them. He shares his reasons fo...

Tom Frieden, former Director of the CDC, joins Michael Klein for a discussion of the factors that make COVID-19 particularly deadly, the importance of good governance in slowing its spread, and the need for better primary care, especially in underserved communities.

The 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre destroyed an area known as “Black Wall Street,” but its effects were felt more widely than in just Oklahoma. In this episode of EconoFact Chats, Lisa D. Cook of Michigan State University joins Michael Klein to discuss her original research on how the Tulsa Massacre raised questions among African Americans about their equal protection under the law and, as a consequence...

Many people have a part of their retirement nest eggs invested in the stock market. But if you are years away from retirement, does it make sense to follow every up and down of the market? What determines stock prices anyway? And what are the links between financial markets and the broader economy? On this episode of EconoFact Chats, Professor John Campbell of Harvard University discusses these an...

Michael Klein is joined by Kenneth Rogoff of Harvard University for a discussion on the history of paper currency, the amount of currency currently in circulation, and the ways in which large-denomination bills facilitate criminal activity, tax avoidance, and corruption. Their conversation also touches on the growing adoption of digital currencies, and the rise of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.

Economists tend to consider public policies from the perspective of efficiency or equity, but do not always consider their political feasibility. However, legislation cannot take effect without the political support required to pass it, no matter how efficient or equitable it may be. In this episode of EconoFact Chats, host Michael Klein, and Jacob Hacker of Yale University discuss the politics be...

Chad Bown of the Peterson Institute for International Economics joins Michael Klein to discuss China's role in the global economy, as well as the international cooperation involved in COVID-19 vaccine manufacturing and distribution.

The gender pay gap in the United States has narrowed over the last 50 years, but today women still earn about 20 percent less than men. In this episode of EconoFact Chats, Francine Blau joins Michael Klein to discuss the gender pay gap, female labor force participation in the US, and the push to reduce gender discrimination, specifically in the economics profession. Francine is the Frances Perkins...

Nobel Prize winner Paul Krugman joins Michael Klein for a discussion on globalization, global trade patterns since the late 19th century, trade policy, protectionism and tariffs, and industrial policy. They also discuss the economics of geography, and the importance of communicating clear economic models. Krugman is a Distinguished Professor of Economics at the Graduate Center of the City Universi...

The World Bank estimates that 1 out of every 11 people in the world lives in extreme poverty. While this is a troubling statistic, three decades ago, that number was more than one in three. On this episode of EconoFact Chats Lant Pritchett of Oxford University joins Michael Klein to discuss the causes of global poverty reduction, focusing on how economic growth correlates with lower poverty rates....

The CARES Act helped mitigate the financial impact of COVID-19 for many people. But it has resulted in an increase in the federal budget deficit, and the federal debt to levels not seen since World War II. What are the costs of a growing federal budget deficit today, and for future generations? To answer this and other questions, Olivier Blanchard joins Michael Klein on EconoFact Chats. Currently...

In December 2020 the Trump Administration revealed that hackers broke into key government networks in one of the largest and most sophisticated cyberattacks in recent history. Can such cyberattacks be stopped? Or at least limited? Or are businesses, governments, and individuals just going to have to learn to live with them? To discuss these, and other issues related to cybersecurity, Michael Klein...

Over 10 million children in the United States live in poverty. Poor children tend to have worse physical and mental health, worse educational outcomes, and lower lifetime earnings than their peers. On this episode of EconoFact Chats, University of Maryland professor Melissa Kearney joins Michael Klein to discuss the scope and causes of child poverty in the U.S., and the policy efforts to alleviate...

As President-elect Joe Biden takes office, his administration faces challenges with little precedent in recent memory; a pandemic which shows few signs of abating, a vaccine that has been developed in record time, but has seen a slow rollout, and an economic downturn not seen since the 1930s. All of this comes at a time of deep political divisions. On this episode of EconoFact Chats Michael Klein...

COVID-19 serves as a warning of what we are likely to face with future pandemics. What incentives can governments use to accelerate vital vaccine development and deployment? Are there differences in the incentives that would help combat something like an annual flu, and a raging pandemic? How do the benefits of vaccinations to individuals fall short of the benefits to society at large? To discuss...