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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

  • A composite image of a selection of the Scout Organization's badges on May 15, 2014 in London, England.
    Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

    From the BBC World Service: Scouts in the U.K. introduce the organization’s first financial literacy skills badge. Plus, 500 police officers raided the offices of the pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper alleging its reporting breaches a national security law. The paper’s editor-in-chief and other senior bosses were arrested at their homes. And, the World Bank says it won’t help El Salvador implement Bitcoin as a form of legal tender.

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  • Firefighting is just one of the jobs done by people who are incarcerated. The chances they will get hired as firefighters after they get out of prison are low.
    David McNew/AFP via Getty Images

    Prison work programs can be selective and often train people for jobs they can’t actually get on the outside, according to law professor Hadar Aviram.

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  • “The Prison in Twelve Landscapes” features Nahshon Thomas, a formerly incarcerated man who teaches chess in Washington Square Park. Filmmaker Brett Story said she wanted to address how prison affects everyday life, like the employment prospects of people with criminal records.
    Courtesy of Oh Ratface Films

    “The Prison in Twelve Landscapes” director Brett Story on the economic consequences of mass incarceration.

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  • Plant Protection Society founder Nicolas Talliu with plants saved from the trash.
    John Laurenson

    And we’ve got the story of one French landscape gardener who saves and sells abandoned plants. Plus, have lumber prices hit their peak? Also, awaiting new analysis from the Federal Reserve on economic recovery, inflation and interest rates. And, the U.S. and EU set aside disputes over aircraft subsidies for now to focus their attention on China.

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  • A view of the Federal Reserve building in Washington, D.C.
    Karen Bleier/AFP/Getty Images

    The Federal Reserve is not expected to raise interest rates. But it turns out some of the Fed’s peers around the world are starting to put away their pandemic relief tools. Also, a major heat wave hitting the West and Southwest means the air conditioners are on and the power grids are stressed. And, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un says the food situation there is difficult and that shortages are possible.

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  • European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen is visiting EU member countries to formally sign off on their national COVID recovery plans.
    Jaime Reina/AFP via Getty Images

    From the BBC World Service: Spain is set to be one of the biggest beneficiaries from European Union funding, and it’s planning labor reforms to tackle the seasonal nature of its tourism sector. Plus, digital sex crimes in South Korea have increased along with advances in spy camera technology. And, despite being Africa’s most powerful economy, Nigeria has many firms that struggle to access a regular electricity supply.

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  • That's because the quality of vehicles has only improved over time, and because people didn't drive as much during the pandemic.
    Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images

    If it hasn’t rusted through, has good tires and an airbag, why trade? The quality of cars these days and, yes, the pandemic, have something to do with an aging car fleet in the U.S. Plus, more data on increasing prices equals more anticipation for what the Federal Reserve will say about its forecasts for interest rates. And, the systemic failure to equitably invest in Black entrepreneurs in the U.S., how that’s changing and whether the wave of commitments by corporations and venture capitalists over the last year represents a temporary blip or a lasting shift in how money is allocated.

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  • The law says that workers have the right to refuse to work in unsafe conditions and that it’s illegal to retaliate against them for raising safety concerns. It requires companies to allow workers to form safety committees.
    Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images

    One answer is giving rank-and-file employees, those not in management roles, a strong voice at the table. New York’s “Hero ACT” requires just that. It will require companies with more than 10 employees to implement a series of safety protocols to help prevent transmission of airborne diseases. Plus, today is the day California ends most of its pandemic restrictions. And, a report this week from the New York Federal Reserve found that people are finding it easier to obtain credit now compared with a year ago.

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  • Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison in the garden of 10 Downing Street, after agreeing to the broad terms of a free trade deal between the U.K. and Australia, on June 15, 2021 in London, England.
    Dominic Lipinski - WPA Pool/Getty Images

    From the BBC World Service: People in Britain will be able to buy tariff-free beef from Australia, though farmers in the U.K. are worried about being undercut on price. Plus, India faces protests against the dominance of e-commerce giants like Amazon and Walmart-backed Flipkart. And, research is underway in New Zealand to see if protective masks and gowns can be decontaminated and used again.

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  • Melissa Bradley of 1863 Ventures has observed a dramatic increase in Black and brown entrepreneurship over the past year, aided by venture capital and corporate investment.
    Courtesy 1863 Ventures

    Many large companies are interested in both the cause and the financial returns, says Melissa Bradley of 1863 Ventures.

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