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David Brancaccio

"Future Effects" Senior Correspondent

David Brancaccio is Marketplace’s “future effects” senior correspondent. In this role, David aims to explore how short-term thinking can impact our personal finances, innovation, government policy, and more.

David worked as the host and senior editor of “Marketplace Morning Report” from 2013 to 2026, where he focused on the regulation of financial markets, the role of technology in labor markets, the history of innovation, digital privacy, sustainability, social enterprises, and financial vulnerability in older adults. David freelanced for Marketplace in 1989 before becoming the program’s European correspondent based in London in 1990.

David hosted the evening program from 1993-2003, then anchored the award-winning public television news program “Now” on PBS after a period co-hosting with journalist Bill Moyers. David has co-produced and appeared in several documentaries, including “Fixing the Future,” about alternative approaches to the economy, and “On Thin Ice,” about climate change and water security, with mountaineer Conrad Anker. David is the author of “Squandering Aimlessly,” a book about personal values and money. He enjoys moderating public policy discussions, including at the Aspen Ideas Festival, Chicago Ideas Week, and the Camden Conference in Maine.

David is from Waterville, Maine, and has degrees from Wesleyan and Stanford universities. Honors include the Peabody, Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University, Emmy, and Walter Cronkite awards. He is married to Mary Brancaccio, a poet and educator. They have three offspring, all adults. He likes making beer and building (and launching) pretty big rockets. Among his heroes are Edward R. Murrow and Wolfman Jack.

Latest from David Brancaccio

  • So far, Russia sanctions get a C+ for effectiveness
    Andrea Bernardi/AFP via Getty Images

    Nearly a year on from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the sanctions regime imposed on Vladimir Putin’s regime by the West and its allies looks to be less effective than initially hoped. According to Brooke Harrington, a professor at Dartmouth, that’s been due in part to the difficulty of sanctioning assets that are being held in the nebulous world of international offshore wealth management. And, a look at what the potential ramifications of a U.S. debt default could be if the federal government fails to raise the nation’s debt ceiling. 

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  • A new research paper on the topic suggests that sanctioning not oligarchs but their wealth managers would actually be even more effective.
    Sergei Supinsky/AFP via Getty Images

    A forthcoming paper on Russia’s economic sanctions finds they could go further by targeting oligarchs’ wealth managers.

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  • An electioneering  poster reflecting the faces of All Progressives Congress (APC) leader, Bola Tinubu (L) and running mate Kashim Shettima (R) lies on the ground party during their final rally at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Lagos on February 21, 2023, ahead of the Nigerian presidential election scheduled for February 25, 2023. (Photo by Samuel Alabi / AFP) (Photo by SAMUEL ALABI/AFP via Getty Images)

    From the BBC World Service: It’s the last day of campaigning in Nigeria, the largest economy in Africa. With the country going through economic turmoil, BBC presenter Alan Kasujja is in the capital city Lagos with elections being held on Saturday. Plus a year in to the Ukraine war BBC’s Leanna Byrne investigates the impact of sanctions on the Russian economy.

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  • A year on, Germany has cut its dependence on Russian gas
    Michele Tantussi/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

    Germany’s energy situation is much different than it was nearly a year ago when Russia invaded Ukraine — the country has effectively cut itself off from dependence on Russian natural gas. We look into the successful rapid transition. United Airlines announced the launch of a $100 million fund to back companies working on developing green jet fuel. Susan Schmidt, Head of Public Equity at the State of Wisconsin Investment Fund, walks us through yesterday’s market turmoil. And, the BBC reports on a Hong Kong scheme to give each resident a hefty stimulus payment. 

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  • United said it’s reducing fees. Will other carriers follow?
    Mario Tama/Getty Images

    One of the world’s largest airlines, United, said it will ease fees for parents wanting to sit with their children aged 12 and under. This, as the Biden administration pushes to crack down on “junk fees” in a variety of industries. A look into why markets are looking turbulent again, which has something to do with the threat of a recession on the horizon. And, a look at the Supreme Court cases that could redefine the internet in the coming months.

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  • How bad weather is causing empty supermarket shelves
    Getty Images

    From the BBC World Service: Bad weather in North Africa means less fruit and vegetables are finding their way into supermarkets in the U.K. and Ireland. Social media is full of pictures of empty shelves in economies dependent on imports. But we hear how the situation has also been exacerbated by supermarkets’ hard-nosed approach to negotiating supply deals with farmers. Plus, why Hong Kong is handing citizens $600 each. And, as we continue our look at the wider impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year, we speak to businesses in Russia facing a skills shortages caused by conscription.

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  • There are few options for mothers in prison
    Getty Images

    For incarcerated women, there are few options for where to send their children when serving their sentences — many lack family members who could take them in, and foster care carries the risk of losing custody. Hear how some groups in Minnesota are forming an alternative foster care system. We check in with Dr. David Kelley, Chief Market Strategist at JP Morgan Funds, about the markets picture underneath the good recent economic data. The Supreme Court is set to take up cases this term that could shape the tech landscape for the foreseeable future. And, in earthquake-torn Turkey and Syria, aid groups are disbursing U.S. dollar-denominated cash donations to victims.

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  • Big cases for Big Tech at the Supreme Court
    Stefani Reynolds/Getty Images

    The Supreme Court will hear a case today challenging a liability shield that’s helped protect tech companies from what users post on their platforms. Many argue this protection helped build the modern internet — and wonder what will happen if it’s struck down. The BBC looks at the results of one of the world’s largest four-day workweek experiments, which was conducted in the UK over a period of six months. And, some personal finance tips for people making big life changes from CBS News’ Jill Schlesinger. 

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  • Making a major life change? These financial steps can help
    Ridofranz via Getty Images

    Whether you’ve decided it’s time to change jobs or you’re dealing with an unforeseen circumstance.

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  • Who in Britain is for a four-day week?
    Scott Barbour/Getty Images

    From the BBC World Service: How would you like to get all your pay for working 80% of the time? We take a look at one of the world’s biggest pilots of the four-day work week. Nearly all the businesses that took part want to carry on. Plus, as President Putin makes a major address to mark the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, we take a look at the human toll. Millions of people fled to other countries and some of them have been setting up businesses. And finally, more heads are rolling in Spain after $250m was spent on trains too wide to fit through tunnels.

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