Freakonomics Radio

Business & Economics Podcasts >

From the co-author of the best-selling Freakonomics titles, comes Freakonomics Radio, a fascinating and often surprising look at the hidden side of, well...everything. Each week Stephen J. Dubner explores the riddles of everyday life—from cheating and crime to parenting and sports—and reaches conclusions that turn conventional wisdom on its head.

From the co-author of the best-selling Freakonomics titles, comes Freakonomics Radio, a fascinating and often surprising look at the hidden side of, well...everything. Each week Stephen J. Dubner explores the riddles of everyday life—from cheating and crime to parenting and sports—and reaches conclusions that turn conventional wisdom on its head.

More Information

Location:

New York, NY

Genres:

Business & Economics Podcasts

Economics

Description:

Language:

English

Contact:

160 Varick St. New York, NY 10013

Episodes

372. Freakonomics Radio Live: “Would You Eat a Piece of Chocolate Shaped Like Dog Poop?”

3/28/2019

What your disgust level says about your politics, how Napoleon influenced opera, why New York City’s subways may finally run on time, and more. Five compelling guests tell Stephen Dubner, co-host Angela Duckworth, and fact-checker Jody Avirgan lots of things they didn’t know.

Duration:00:57:14

Why You Shouldn’t Open a Restaurant (Ep. 347 Update)

3/21/2019

Kenji Lopez-Alt became a rock star of the food world by bringing science into the kitchen in a way that everyday cooks can appreciate. Then he dared to start his own restaurant — and discovered problems that even science can’t solve.

Duration:00:50:34

371. A Free-Trade Democrat in the Trump White House

3/14/2019

For years, Gary Cohn thought he’d be the next C.E.O. of Goldman Sachs. Instead, he became the “adult in the room” in a chaotic administration. Cohn talks about the fights he won, the fights he lost, and the fights he was no longer willing to have. Also: why he and Trump are still on speaking terms even after he reportedly called the president “a professional liar.”

Duration:00:50:04

370. How to Fail Like a Pro

3/7/2019

The road to success is paved with failure, so you might as well learn to do it right. (Ep. 5 of the “How to Be Creative” series.)

Duration:00:43:26

369. A Good Idea Is Not Good Enough

2/28/2019

Whether you’re building a business or a cathedral, execution is everything. We ask artists, scientists, and inventors how they turned ideas into reality. And we find out why it’s so hard for a group to get things done — and what you can do about it. (Ep. 4 of the “How to Be Creative” series.)

Duration:00:56:32

368. Where Do Good Ideas Come From?

2/21/2019

Whether you’re mapping the universe, hosting a late-night talk show, or running a meeting, there are a lot of ways to up your idea game. Plus: the truth about brainstorming. (Ep. 3 of the “How to Be Creative” series.)

Duration:01:03:01

367. The Future of Meat

2/14/2019

Global demand for beef, chicken, and pork continues to rise. So do concerns about environmental and other costs. Will reconciling these two forces be possible — or, even better, Impossible™?

Duration:00:54:01

366. This Economist Predicted the Last Crisis. What’s the Next One?

2/7/2019

In 2005, Raghuram Rajan said the financial system was at risk “of a catastrophic meltdown.” After stints at the I.M.F. and India’s central bank, he sees another potential crisis — and he offers a solution. Is it stronger governments? Freer markets? Rajan’s answer: neither.

Duration:00:51:14

Extra: Domonique Foxworth Full Interview

2/2/2019

Stephen Dubner’s conversation with the former N.F.L. player, union official, and all-around sports thinker, recorded for our “Hidden Side of Sports” series.

Duration:01:31:50

365. Not Just Another Labor Force

1/31/2019

If you think talent and hard work give top athletes all the leverage to succeed, think again. As employees in the Sports-Industrial Complex, they’ve got a tight earnings window, a high injury rate, little choice in where they work — and a very early forced retirement. (Ep. 6 of “The Hidden Side of Sports” series.)

Duration:01:00:54

Extra: Mark Cuban Full Interview

1/26/2019

A conversation with the Shark Tank star, entrepreneur, and Dallas Mavericks owner recorded for the Freakonomics Radio series “The Hidden Side of Sports.”

Duration:00:44:16

364. Inside the Sports-Industrial Complex

1/24/2019

For most of us, the athletes are what make sports interesting. But if you own the team or run the league, your players are essentially very expensive migrant workers who eat into your profits. We talk to N.F.L., N.B.A., and U.F.C. executives about labor costs, viewership numbers, legalized gambling, and the rise of e-sports. (Ep. 5 of “The Hidden Side of Sports” series.)

Duration:00:55:05

Extra: Mark Teixeira Full Interview

1/19/2019

A conversation with former Major League Baseball player and current ESPN analyst Mark Teixeira, recorded for the Freakonomics Radio series “The Hidden Side of Sports.”

Duration:01:04:12

363. Think Like a Winner

1/17/2019

Great athletes aren’t just great at the physical stuff. They’ve also learned how to handle pressure, overcome fear, and stay focused. Here’s the good news: you don’t have to be an athlete to use what they know. (Ep. 4 of “The Hidden Side of Sports” series.)

Duration:00:57:14

Hacking the World Bank (Ep. 197 Update)

1/12/2019

Jim Yong Kim has an unorthodox background for a World Bank president — and his reign has been just as unorthodox. He has just announced he’s stepping down, well before his term is over; we recorded this interview with him in 2015.

Duration:00:36:09

362. Why Is This Man Running for President?

1/10/2019

In the American Dream sweepstakes, Andrew Yang was a pretty big winner. But for every winner, he came to realize, there are thousands upon thousands of losers — a “war on normal people,” he calls it. Here’s what he plans to do about it.

Duration:00:53:04

How to Be Happy (Ep. 345 Rebroadcast)

1/3/2019

The U.N.’s World Happiness Report — created to curtail our unhealthy obsession with G.D.P. — is dominated every year by the Nordic countries. We head to Denmark to learn the secrets of this happiness epidemic (and to see if we should steal them).

Duration:00:39:30

How to Win Games and Beat People (Ep. 247 Rebroadcast)

12/27/2018

Games are as old as civilization itself, and some people think they have huge social value regardless of whether you win or lose. Tom Whipple is not one of those people. That’s why he consulted an army of preposterously overqualified experts to find the secret to winning any game.

Duration:00:55:03

People Aren’t Dumb. The World Is Hard. (Ep. 340 Rebroadcast)

12/20/2018

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. The founder of behavioral economics describes his unlikely route to success; his reputation for being lazy; and his efforts to fix the world — one nudge at a time.

Duration:00:59:44

Freakonomics Radio Live: “We Thought of a Way to Manipulate Your Perception of Time.”

12/15/2018

We learn how to be less impatient, how to tell fake news from real, and the simple trick that nurses used to make better predictions than doctors. Journalist Manoush Zomorodi co-hosts; our real-time fact-checker is the author and humorist A.J. Jacobs.

Duration:00:58:29