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Daily business news and economic stories

Make Me Smart

Daily Business News & Culture podcast
Kimberly Adams
Kai Ryssdal
Latest Episode

The internet as we know it rests on 26 words from 1996

Jun 11, 2019 · Episode 117
A girl watches a video on youtube on a computer on February 27, 2013 in Chisseaux near Tours, central France.

Episodes 1251 - 1260 of 1381

  • Jun 4, 2019 · Episode 116

    Your crash course on the Indian economy

    An Indian supporter of Bharatiya Janata Party jumps in the air as he celebrates along with others on the vote results day for India's general election in Siliguri on May 23, 2019.
    DIPTENDU DUTTA/AFP/Getty Images

    Newly reelected Prime Minister Narendra Modi faces significant challenges, including the highest unemployment in 45 years and losing special trade status with the U.S.

  • May 28, 2019 · Episode 115

    Huawei and the tech cold war

    A Huawei engineer displays parts in the research and development area of the Bantian campus on April 12, 2019 in Shenzhen, China.
    Kevin Frayer/Getty Images

    The fight over Chinese tech could change the race for 5G and rewire the global economy.

  • May 21, 2019 · Episode 114

    Antitrust the process

    Employees stand in an Apple retail store in Grand Central Terminal, January 3, 2019 in New York City.
    Drew Angerer/Getty Images

    The conversation around antitrust is expanding, and tech giants could get caught up in it.

  • May 14, 2019 · Episode 113

    How to survive climate change

    A man on a rooftop looks at approaching flames as the Springs fire continues to grow on May 3, 2013, near Camarillo, California.
    David McNew/Getty Images

    It may be too late to avoid the worst consequences of our warming planet. But we could still adapt to them.

  • May 8, 2019 · Episode 112

    What. The. Fed.

    WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 28:  Chairman of the Federal Reserve nominee Jerome Powell testifies during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee November 28, 2017 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. Powell will succeed Janet Yellen to be the next Federal Reserve Board chairman if confirmed by the Senate.  (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

    Seriously … what’s a central bank to do? The Federal Reserve’s got quite the puzzle on its hands.

  • Apr 30, 2019 · Episode 111

    CRISPR for beginners

    CRISPR for beginners
    Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

    The gene-editing tool is ushering in a biotech revolution. Here's what you need to know.

  • U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders speaks during a health care rally at the 2017 Convention of the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee on September 22, 2017 in San Francisco, California. 
    Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

    As the idea inches toward the mainstream, we unpack how it could affect the economy.

  • The Lyft logo is shown on the screen at the Nasdaq offices in Times Square on March 29, 2019 in New York.
    DON EMMERT/AFP/Getty Images

    A string of IPOs cements the gig economy as part of working life.

  • Apr 9, 2019 · Episode 108

    The Explainathon strikes back

    This isn't literally what Kai and Molly look like trying to answer all your questions, but it's definitely the vibe.
    Ron Burton/Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

    It’s our the fifth Explainathon, the semi-biannual challenge when Kai Ryssdal and Molly Wood try to answer as many of your questions as possible. This one has everything: Privacy regulation! Social Security! 5G! The college admissions scandal! The dark web! We tackle it all.

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About the show

Every weekday, Kai Ryssdal and Kimberly Adams break down the news in tech, the economy and culture. How do companies make money from disinformation? How can we tackle student debt? Why do 401(k)s exist? What will it take to keep working moms from leaving the workforce? Together, we dig into complex topics to help make today make sense. Because none of us is as smart as all of us.

Ryssdal has been a trusted broadcaster for two decades and received an Emmy for investigative journalism for “Big Sky, Big Money,” a PBS Frontline documentary about money in politics.

Before coming to Marketplace, Adams reported on the political, social and economic upheaval in Egypt following the Arab Spring. While reporting in Cairo, she received awards from the National Association of Black Journalists, the Religion Communicators Council, and the Association for Women in Communication. She was also competitively selected for the International Women’s Media Foundation “Great Lakes” Reporting fellowship to Uganda, where she reported on environmental, economic and LGBT issues.

“Make Me Smart” is “a podcast to keep up with, even in quarantine,” Vanity Fair says.