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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

  • Teachable economic moments found in a holiday classic
    Photo by Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images

    First, a $1.7 trillion spending bill could help avoid a partial government shutdown. The movie “It’s a Wonderful Life” carries a little of bit of economic history, which we dive into.

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  • Officials visit a natural gas pipeline facility in Lubmin, northeastern Germany. Since invasion of Ukraine, the country has effectively weaned itself off of Russian natural gas.
    Odd Andersen/AFP via Getty Images

    From the BBC World Service: Russia has described the European Union’s cap on the price of gas as “an unacceptable market attack”. The limit was agreed in response to soaring energy bills caused by Russia’s war on Ukraine. Plus North Korea has criticized Japan’s decision to double its defense spending. And European traders at the Christmas markets in northern England tell us about how they’re coping with the challenges of soaring inflation and Brexit regulations.

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  • Consumers still spending under the cloud of recession talk
    Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images

    Despite economists’ speculation about a recession and some signs of caution from consumers, Julia Coronado of MacroPolicy Perspectives notes that the broad data still looks solid. Elsewhere, the market for single-family homes looks to be slowing. The BBC offers up a tale about the role of the transistor radio in regions of the world that aren’t covered by the blanket of internet and smartphones.

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  • Twitter users have spoken. Most of them want Elon Musk out.
    Chris Delmas/AFP via Getty Images

    This is according to a poll from the billionaire … will he follow suit? Also, we tell you what things to look for if you’re worried about a recession. The BBC reports on a biodiversity summit in Canada.

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  • LUSAIL CITY, QATAR - DECEMBER 18: Lionel Messi of Argentina lifts the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Winner's Trophy after the team's victory during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Final match between Argentina and France at Lusail Stadium on December 18, 2022 in Lusail City, Qatar.
    Getty Images

    From the BBC World Service: Argentina are soccer’s new world champions, and their star forward Lionel Messi’s marketing power is about to go through the roof, according to one of the industry’s biggest figures. Also today, a first trade visit by Australia’s foreign minister to China in three years, and the BBC World Service celebrates its 90th birthday.

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  • Nokia Bell Labs still has the first transistor, which was invented in 1947. Here's David Brancaccio holding it at the company's campus in Murray Hill, New Jersey.
    Alex Schroeder/Marketplace

    The future began 75 years ago with the invention of something small that’s now considered the most manufactured item in human history and the biggest thing since fire. This is a Marketplace special report on the birth of the transistor, which happened in New Jersey on Dec. 16, 1947 at Bell Telephone Laboratories. Bell Labs was at that time the research arm of the telephone monopoly AT&T. But what were the other ingredients needed for this place to become a hotspot for innovation? Why did it take years for the transistor to find a home inside the first commercial pocket radio? How did the transistor contribute to the rise of Silicon Valley? Transistors defined the last half of the 20th century and nearly the first quarter of the century we live in now. We spent some time exploring the ecosystems of innovation that created this world.

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  • Back in the 1970s, the first microprocessors and transistor technology were breaking ground in calculators.
    MarioGuti via Getty Images

    “The first digital use of the transistor for consumers was in a calculator,” says Rick Bensene, curator of the Old Calculator Web Museum.

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  • Could “Avatar: The Way of Water” show a way forward for the U.S. and China?
    Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images

    Christopher Low pores over the markets with us. A recent study further illustrates how young adults are handling debt. Jennifer Pak discusses how the “Avatar” sequel could improve relations between the U.S. and China.

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  • Happy birthday to the transistor
    Getty Images

    Congress is trying to get TikTok banned in the U.S. over cybersecurity concerns. The final part of our series on the transistor chronicles how two men – one from Egypt, the other from Korea – became key figures in its development. 

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  • Rates ramp up in Europe
    Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

    From the BBC World Service: Europe’s central bank boss Christine Lagarde has warned there’s a long way to go in the fight against inflation as interest rates continue to rise. Plus, a legal case in Kenya is alleging Facebook didn’t do enough to stop viral posts that encouraged the spread of hate and violence during Ethiopia’s civil war. And, the Brit Billion – a new way to recognize music streams.

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