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What have you always wondered about the economy? Tell us

Kai Ryssdal

Host and senior editor

SHORT BIO

I speak my native tongue into a microphone.

What was your first job?

Lifeguard. (Well, that and mowing lawns.)

What do you think is the hardest part of your job that no one knows?

Staying calm.

What advice do you wish someone had given you before you started this career?

Don't think — just talk.

In your next life, what would your career be?

Helicopter pilot.

Episodes Hosted by Kai (4,629)

Make Me Smart with Kai and Molly | Episode 359

The fallout from GameStop and Wall Street's wild week

Jan 29, 2021
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Marketplace

We've had a little bit of everything this week

Jan 29, 2021
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Make Me Smart with Kai and Molly | Episode 358

Here's how Robinhood (and short selling GameStop) actually work

Jan 28, 2021
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Marketplace

It's time for better face masks

Jan 28, 2021
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Make Me Smart with Kai and Molly | Episode 357

GameStop isn't a scam or a penny stock — we'll explain

Jan 27, 2021
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Marketplace

What exactly is going on with GameStop?

Jan 27, 2021
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Make Me Smart with Kai and Molly | Episode 356

The state of the union is ... not great

Jan 26, 2021
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Marketplace

Letting the economy run hot

Jan 26, 2021
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Make Me Smart with Kai and Molly | Episode 355

How GameStop became a "meme stock"

Jan 25, 2021
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Marketplace

The presidential promise to "buy American"

Jan 25, 2021
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Latest Stories (5,251)

United States of Work

Despite challenges, this movie theater operator is optimistic about the future

by Kai Ryssdal and Maria Hollenhorst
Jan 28, 2021
“While streaming is a reality, it’s not communal,” said Stephanie Silverman of Nashville’s Belcourt Theatre. People “will want to be out in the world again.”
An empty screening room at the Belcourt Theater in Nashville, which has been closed for indoor screenings since Jan. 1.
(Courtesy of the Belcourt Theatre)
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COVID-19

Does the sale of fine art need physical spaces?

by Alli Fam and Kai Ryssdal
Jan 27, 2021
Masha Golovina of Masterworks.io talks about the two-tiered economy and says that when physical art fairs are coupled with online sales, "that's the ideal mix."
Two paintings by Fernand Léger that debuted at auction last year before the arrival of the pandemic, which disrupted gallery sales.
Tristan Fewings/Getty Images for Sotheby's
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Boston Consulting CEO on the ties between business and politics

by Kai Ryssdal and Andie Corban
Jan 25, 2021
Rich Lesser said the business world is ready to find common ground with the Biden administration.
The New York Stock Exchange in New York City. "I think business leaders are all struggling with how prominent to be" at a time of stark political division in the United States, Rich Lesser says.
Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images
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COVID-19

The drivers of this economy: Long-haul trucking in the pandemic

by Kai Ryssdal and Alli Fam
Jan 25, 2021
Back in the spring, state transportation departments closed highway rest stops. And that put a strain on drivers.
Kearsey Rothlander, a long-haul truck driver, says there have been ups and downs for drivers as the pandemic changes what freight is in demand .
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
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A workforce crisis hurting women, especially mothers

by Kai Ryssdal and Daisy Palacios
Jan 22, 2021
Women left their jobs at a far greater rate than men in 2020. What does this mean for the economy?
Reshma Saujani, founder of Girls Who Code, says the new administration should press companies to bring back female employees who have left the workforce.
Brad Barket/Getty Images for Fast Company
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With business down 95%, Hawaiian entrepreneur hopes her company and town survive

by Kai Ryssdal and Andie Corban
Jan 19, 2021
The pandemic has largely halted tourism, and Manu Powers has had to lay off most of her staff.
Marco Bertorello/Getty Images
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COVID & Unemployment

As poverty rises, South Florida organization for the homeless starts feeding neighbors, too

by Kai Ryssdal and Andie Corban
Jan 19, 2021
The number of people showing up for free hot meals has more than doubled since the pandemic began, the CEO of HOPE South Florida says.
A rise in poverty and homelessness has become a major concern as the pandemic recession has left millions of people without jobs. Above, a person in Miami sleeps on a sidewalk in 2001.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
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COVID-19

Why much of Nebraska's economy remains strong despite the pandemic

by Kai Ryssdal and Andie Corban
Jan 19, 2021
Some businesses in Newman Grove, Nebraska, have been booming as fewer people leave town to shop. Also, the region's agriculture economy remains healthy.
Rural Nebraska is benefiting from a resilient farm economy and has avoided the shutdowns suffered by many metropolitan areas.
Scott Olson/Getty Images
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"Civil society is much more fragile than I think Americans appreciate," says outgoing FCC Chair Ajit Pai

by Kai Ryssdal and Daisy Palacios
Jan 15, 2021
Pai says Congress needs to legislate rules so that agency regulations, like net neutrality, don't swing with the leader's political affiliation.
Social media companies "do not operate by the same principles that other companies in the internet economy do," says outgoing FCC Chairman Ajit Pai.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
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Speech on the internet: The First Amendment and Section 230 are different

by Kai Ryssdal and Alli Fam
Jan 14, 2021
Private parties can decide whose speech they want to distribute. That's a First Amendment right, not a Section 230 right.
Twitter permanently suspended President Trump's account, citing the risk of further incitement of violence.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
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