The Indicator from Planet Money

Microsoft just announced its intention to buy video game developer, Activision Blizzard, for almost $70 billion. This has some people speculating about Microsoft's future metaverse aspirations.

TikTok has become one of the most popular social media platforms in the world, and increasingly, a powerful tool for marketing. Today, we learn why TikTok makes us buy.

Despite being fairly simple items, nails can actually reveal a lot about the greater economy. Today, we talk to economist Dan Sichel about the history of nails and what they can teach us about economic trends.

Inflation reached a 40-year high today of 7%! There's been a storm of debate about an old anti-inflation policy: Price controls. So we dust off the history books and see what happened in World War II.

McDonald's is notorious for frequent malfunctions of its ice cream machine. What's behind those malfunctions and why is the government getting involved?

Disruptive backlogs at west coast ports in the U.S. have caused some shippers to get creative with their routes. Today, we tell you why one vessel took the long route from Shanghai to Cleveland, Ohio.

Unemployment is at 3.9%. Is this full employment? Some Americans aren't so sure. We look at this complex situation through the eyes of someone who has been job hunting for a long time.

In hospitals, it's standard for nurses to work a 12-hour shift. But research shows that may not be such a good idea for patients — or nurses.

For years, Johnson & Johnson has been entangled in lawsuits regarding its talcum based products being linked to causing ovarian cancer. And to save itself from future lawsuits, the company is betting big on a tricky legal move named after a famous dance.

Although there are more warehouses in the U.S. than ever before, these warehouses are running out of space. Today on the show, we go behind the scenes into the warehousing world to understand why warehouses are running out of space.

2022 is finally here, and many people are excited for their fresh starts. But, it's no secret that following through with New Year's resolutions can be challenging. Today on the show, behavioral economist Katy Milkman shares her tips on how you can follow through.

It's Encore Week at The Indicator! We're sharing some of our favorite episodes of 2021. Today, we hear one of Stacey's favorite episodes from this year. It's a deep dive into how the Bureau of Labor Statistics calculates a key economic indicator, the Consumer Price Index (CPI), the most widely used measure of inflation. This episode originally came out in July.

It's Encore Week at The Indicator! We're sharing some of our favorite episodes of 2021. Today, we hear about people who became small business owners after losing their jobs due to the pandemic. AKA the hotdog guy episode! This episode originally came out in July.

It's Encore Week at The Indicator! We're sharing some of our favorite episodes from 2021. Today, we hear Darian's favorite episode to work on this year. It's a story about one economist's idea to conserve wetland habitats and save birds from losing their homes. This episode originally came out in July.

Hey Indigators! It's Encore Week at The Indicator. We're sharing some of our favorite episodes of the year. Today, we're kicking things off with a listener favorite about the time President Andrew Jackson paid off all of America's interest-bearing debt...with disastrous results. This episode originally came out in August.

Indicator family feud is back, and the stakes are higher than ever! Stacey is joined by our friends from Planet Money as everyone makes their case for the indicator of the year. Who will win?

It's time to award our last Beigie of the year! And we find out that reading the Beige Book from back to front makes all the difference in the world.

One Taiwanese company, TSMC, makes 90% of the most advanced semiconductors — the chips for your phone or car. From Hong Kong to Boston to Texas to Taipei: This is TSMC founder Morris Chang's story.

You can buy almost anything online, including ... human cells. Culturing and selling cells is a multibillion dollar global industry that supports all sorts of scientific research. But where do those cells come from?

Concern about inflation has the Federal Reserve pivoting from its earlier plans. Meanwhile, a spike in COVID cases disrupts Broadway, ball games, and businesses.