High on President Obama's agenda is reforming our nation's schools. Kai Ryssdal speaks with author Susan Eaton about the problems with our schools and what can be done to fix them in our economic state.

At 2008's World Economic Forum, Bill Gates challenged corporations to engage in 'creative capitalism,' or be more socially responsible. Kai Ryssdal speaks with journalist Michael Kinsley about what that entails.

Once again the U.S. economy is recovering from the collapse of a financial bubble. Economist Dean Baker, author of "Plunder and Blunder," tells Kai Ryssdal that dramatic ups and downs need not be a part of our capitalist system.

Signs point to the credit markets finally loosening up. Scott Jagow speaks with financial analyst Peter Cohan about why the credit markets may be improving.

The best way to avoid getting scammed is to learn from history. Dr. Chris McKenna, who's writing a book on schemers, tells Steve Chiotakis about one particularly bad scammer who affected the world economy in the 1920's.

Countrywide Financial is arguably the company at the heart of the mortgage financial crisis. Kai Ryssdal speaks with Countrywide's former Senior Vice President of Marketing Adam Michaelson about his experiences at the company.

Niall Ferguson, author of "Ascent of Money," talks with Kai Ryssdal about how competition between banks and their drive to boost share prices has led to today's financial mess.

Yale economist Robert Shiller's been watching the real estate market for a long time. He's the author of a new book called "The Subprime Solution." Since that would be a pretty popular thing right now, Kai Ryssdal asked him to explain it.

Trouble's not new to Caribbean banana growers. Author Peter Chapman chronicles the rise and fall of the company at the center of a lot of that trouble, the United Fruit Company, in his book, "Bananas!" He talks with Kai Ryssdal.