Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff

On this week's Economic Update, the entire program is devoted to how old socialism's rapid growth and global spread in the 19th and 20th centuries entailed a focus on the state. Key issues were: (1) would the socialist state limit itself to regulating capitalist enterprises and the market (as in many Western European nations) to enhance the well-being of the employee class or would the state itsel...

In this week's Economic Update, Professor Richard Wolff discusses the rise of the Chinese car industry, the struggle between employers vs employees over in-person vs remote workplaces, and the US military's anti-vax program in the Philippines as part of the US-China Cold War that is already underway. In the second half of our program, we interview Kristen Gonzalez, New York State Senator, District...

In this week's Economic Update, Professor Richard Wolff discusses the latest US and EU tariffs against China's electric vehicles, 27,000 Virginia teachers vote to unionize, and students and workers at all 6 University of California campuses strike against attempted repression of students peacefully advocating a Gaza ceasefire.  In the second half of our program, we interview Oscar-nominated and Em...

In this week's Economic Update, Professor Richard Wolff devotes the entire program to an analysis of tariffs. We discuss why tariffs are not a worker's issue, why capitalism's continuous swings between free trade and protectionist periods and phases make little impact on workers, and why competing capitalists seek to get workers to support their positions on tariffs.   The d@w Team Economic Update...

In this week's Economic Update, Professor Richard Wolff discusses The Washington Post's exposure of the corporate rich sponsoring police repression against student protests and how Boeing rewards CEOs while it exhibits the airlines' worst safety record. In addition, the UAW loses union election as German capitalists and southern governors join forces to intimidate workers with job threats. Finally...

Third Party Politics and Social Change We would like to present a special edition of Economic Update featuring an exclusive discussion between Professor Richard Wolff and Dr. Cornel West. This program was recorded in June, 2023, but unfortunately we were unable to air this important discussion at that time. You will hear Dr. West explain why he undertook the challenge and burden to run for Preside...

In this week's Economic Update, Professor Richard Wolff comments on US megabanks once again taking new off-the-books risks, Elon Musk endorsing right-wing undemocratic census proposals and  Fossil Fuel industry executives bribe Trump with campaign donations. In addition, we highlight the many US and global labor unions and workers who have joined the movement in supporting of ending the Israeli mi...

[EU S14 E20] Roots of a Surging US Labor Movement In this week's Economic Update, Professor Richard Wolff discusses the reasons why the official United States unemployment rate is currently low in comparison to historic rates; We also highlight why U.S. restaurants are losing business. We then turn to the hypocrisy of Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen in the face of repression of growing American pr...

[EU S14 E19] Prospects for a Political Turn Left This week's Economic Update Professor Richard Wolff discusses the successful unionization drives that is sweeping across US universities (example: Boston University), We highlight the facts that disprove Biden's "great economy" claims and why inflation is much worse in the United States than in China.  Finally we have an exclusive Interview with Jar...

[EU S14 E18] Uneven Development a Key Problem of Capitalism This week in honor of Karl Marx's birthday over this past weekend, Professor Richard Wolff offers a discussion of Marx's important theory of uneven development as central to capitalism. We show its widespread existence, using examples of it from past and present. We conclude by showing how uneven development helps cause key social problem...

[EU S14 E17] The Phenomenon of China This week's Economic Update Professor Richard Wolff dedicates the entire show to the economic developmental achievement of China, together with the historical background that motivated that achievement. We analyze the uniqueness of both the economic philosophy and the politics of China. The d@w Team Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff is a DemocracyatWork.inf...

[EU S14 E16] A Critique of Government Spending This week's Economic Update Professor Richard Wolff devotes this program devoted to how to understand government spending. How it shapes the larger society. We will focus on two questions 1) What is the government spending on? and 2) How is that money going to be used, and who benefits? If government spending only flows to capitalist corporations, the...

[EU S14 E15] A Sea Change In US Labor's Militancy In this week's Economic Update Professor, Richard Wolff examines US spending on war materials for Ukraine and Israel, we will discuss Chinese Electric Vehicle imports and the US's protectionist response, and we will highlight the possible convergence of worker cooperatives as part of union negotiating strategies, and we discuss the impact of Harvar...

[EU S14 E14] Economic Update: The Myth of Black Buying Power This week's Economic Update Professor Richard Wolff discusses how the capitalist political economy can explain the Baltimore bridge disaster, we explain why raising minimum wages helps big vs small businesses. We highlight the recent court rulings in New York and how cities can lower rents for their citizens as Kingston, NY just did, (if...

[EU S14 E13] Resurgent Labor Organizing In The South This week's Economic Update Professor Richard Wolff discusses the US Treasury Department charges Apple as monopoly, Georgia's state government sides openly with employers against unions, two union members decide to enter important elections as independent voices in Nebraska and West Virginia, and a critique of the FED's policy that keeps inflati...

[EU S14 E12] How Capitalism Distributes Power Updates on resurging child labor in US, colleges athlete vote to join unions, unionization sweeping not-for-profit charities (hospitals, museums, etc) such as MassMoca in western Massachusetts. Major discussion of how capitalism concentrates power in mass media (including social media), in authoritarian internal structures of corporations, and via dona...

[EU S14 E11] Patriarch and Capitalism This week's Economic Update Professor Richard Wolff discusses the UAW union's latest moves. Their organizing drives at auto plants, their efforts to form unions among employed and free-lance journalists. In addition, we will highlight New York Governor Kathy Hochul's decision to deploy national guard troops in New York City subways and what that means for ever...

[EU S14 E10] Debris From A Declining Empire This week's episode of Economic Update we discuss we discuss United Kingdom politician George Galloway by-election victory, and the raised minimum wage in UK. We will comment on Elon Musk's lawsuit against the NLRB, as Trader Joe, Starbucks, and Amazon also join to ask right-wing Supreme Court to gut regulation of business. We then look at US protectioni...

[EU S14 E09] Capitalism, Gender, And A Split Society This week's episode of Economic Update we discuss we discuss the underemployed of US college graduates, failed anti-Russian sanctions, the collapsed UK birthrate, and expanding wars in the Middle East, we will dive into the costs and risks in absence of a ceasefire in Gaza. Finally we Interview Dr. Harriet Fraad, host of Capitalism Hits Home and...

[EU S14 E08] Breaking Up With Capitalism This week's episode of Economic Update hosted by Professor Richard Wolff, we discuss the Philadelphia University of the Arts Faculty Union and its struggles; we clarify what declining inflation does and does not mean; we answer the question: as to why sanctions fail. Finally we interview Essence Magazine's senior news & politics editor, author, and lawyer M...

[EU S14 E07] Capitalism and Tax Injustice This week's episode of Economic Update hosted by Professor Richard Wolff, we discuss Germany's recession, California fast-food workers unionize, How the war in Ukraine boosts US stock market, corporate stock holdings, while hurting most wage/salary incomes, In addition we ask what lessons from the protest/revolt of European farmers? Finally, the ongoing ex...

   [EU S14 E06] The U.S. Tax System Designed For Economic Injustice   This week's episode of Economic Update hosted by Professor Richard Wolff, we will be discussing the increasingly more common corporate threats to force remote workers back to working onsite. We then turn to Ukraine war economics, U.S. vs BGI as anti-Chinese economic nationalism, US's escalation of war in the Middle East, and fin...

******************************************************************************  [EU S14 E05] The US Economy As An Apartheid System  ******************************************************************************   This week's episode of Economic Update hosted by Professor Richard Wolff, we will be discussing the continuing decline of US manufacturing; a 29,000 person strike at California State Univ...

******************************************************************************  [EU S14 E04] US Capitalism At The Crossroads ****************************************************************************** This week's Economic Update Professor Richard Wolff discusses the special dimensions and qualities of the US labor movement's current dynamism; Thomas Piketty's analysis showing how capitalism gen...

******************************************************************************  [EU S14 E03] As The Empire Crumbles  ******************************************************************************   In this week's episode of EU, Prof. Wolff delivers updates on the mass closing of Greyhound bus stations around the U.S., the escalating strengths of Russian obstacles in Ukraine, the choice the UK face...