Pulsar

The Data Behind the Business

Business EN ↓ 16 episodes

Data not only provides a more accurate view of things; it can also tell better stories. In a world of catchphrases and memes, we'd all like a more researched and robust picture of the business world. What factors were most significant for the meteoric rise and fall of certain companies, and was their trajectory truly meteoric? How true are the organizational narratives we've all been conditioned to believe? Were the most celebrated advertising campaigns actually as successful as everyone thinks they were? Every month in The Data Behind the Business, we'll look at hard numbers and statistics to...

Author

Pulsar

Episodes

The Evolution of the Smithsonian 03.06.2026 14:07

How a half-million dollar gift and a dream turned into the largest museum complex in the world.

How Disney Became the Juggernaut 25.02.2026 15:56

The unique decisions that transformed a simple cartoon company into an entertainment empire.

Can Amtrak Be Profitable? 30.01.2026 12:52

Amtrak is compared to the other top-performing passenger railways in the world.

Why the United States Doesn't Have High-speed Rail 30.12.2025 9:18

The data behind the largest rail system in the world.

How Much is a 30-second Ad on The Late Show? 29.11.2025 12:34

An attempt to quantify the economics behind advertising on the top late night television show.

Is Money Meaningless? 24.09.2025 10:50

The real data behind the gold standard and the effects on the global economy from fiat currency.

COVID Did Not Kill the Movie Industry 20.08.2025 13:34

The truth behind movie studio and theater data reveals a different story than the media keeps touting about the state of the film industry.

Pepsi Looks More Like Number One 30.06.2025 12:03

While the media bemoans Pepsi-Cola's fall to number four in the U.S. soft drink market, they're missing the larger data picture.

Can Spotify Save Itself? 31.07.2024 8:41

Spotify changed how the world consumes music and rescued a failing industry, but at a huge cost that it may not be able to sustain.

Tesla's Future Looks Like the Past 27.06.2024 13:46

Tesla's performance and valuation are compared to the early years of GM and Ford when those companies were similar in size.

Who Killed the Post Office? 25.05.2024 18:25

The United States Postal Service is often derided as one of the most inefficient businesses, but its unique requirements and the particulars of the United States reveal a more complex story.

College on a Curve 20.04.2024 12:30

Exploring the relationships of American college tuition, enrollment, and GPAs.

The Olympics Bankruptcy Machine 27.03.2024 14:26

Are the Olympics truly bad business for a host city, or do they simply amplify a deep-seated problem with our own psychology?

Untying the Data from The Knot 23.02.2024 9:08

Investigating the disparaging differences in reported spending on engagement rings.

Kodak's Wild Ride 19.01.2024 11:24

A different look at how Kodak went from a $20 billion company to bankrupt in 20 years.

Introducing The Data Behind the Business 20.12.2023 1:25

Introducing The Data Behind the Business, a podcast that looks at hard numbers and statistics to get a better understanding of how industries are actually shaped.