Kai Ryssdal

Host and Senior Editor

Kai is the host and senior editor of “Marketplace,” the most widely heard program on business and the economy — radio or television, commercial or public broadcasting — in the country. Kai speaks regularly with CEOs of Fortune 500 companies, startup entrepreneurs, small-business owners and everyday participants in the American and global economies. Before his career in broadcasting, Kai served in the United States Navy and United States Foreign Service. He’s a graduate of Emory University and Georgetown University. Kai lives in Los Angeles with his wife and four children.

Latest from Kai Ryssdal

Mar 26, 2008
Fewer Powerpoints, more napkins
In his new book, "Back of the Napkin," author and consultant Dan Roam says if we want better presentations at meetings — and better ideas — we have to get rid of all those Powerpoints.
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Mar 26, 2008
Is it a good time to get into real estate?
So, consumer confidence is down and home prices are still sliding. Maybe it's time for some counterintuitive behavior — like thinking about getting into the housing market. Kai Ryssdal checks out that notion with Dan McGinn of Newsweek.
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Mar 25, 2008
Products follow tech-savvy women
Women outspend men by more than $14 billion on technology products, a study found. Kevin Pereira from G4's "Attack of the Show" talks with Kai Ryssdal about some of the gadgets being marketed to women and why.
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Mar 22, 2008
Week on Wall Street
Stockbroker and business analyst David Johnson chats with host Kai Ryssdal about what happened on Wall Street this week and what may lie ahead.
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Mar 21, 2008
Energy independence won’t help us
The U.S. currently imports two-thirds of its oil needs — even President Bush believes the nation is "addicted to oil." But commentator Jerry Taylor says that since importing oil is cheaper than producing it domestically, energy independence isn't a good idea, or even practical.
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Mar 21, 2008
Olympic sponsors sweat over politics
The Chinese crackdown on Tibet has been a major news story leading up to Beijing's 2008 Olympics. Now corporate sponsors who have contributed hundreds of millions are worried about the implications of the political unrest. Kai Ryssdal talks to Scott Tong in Shanghai, China.
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Mar 20, 2008
Accounting for the Iraq war
After five years in the war in Iraq, estimates of the monetary costs range from several hundred billion dollars to trillions of dollars. Kai Ryssdal talks to University of Chicago economics professor Steven Davis about how to truly assess the cost of the war.
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Mar 19, 2008
Letters
The mailbox is bursting with your comments. This week: your thoughts on our special series "The Middle East at Work," including your personal observations from living and working in Dubai.
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Mar 19, 2008
Troubled times for individual investors
From mom and pop investors to day traders, everyone is affected by the chaotic market. Kai Ryssdal speaks to Daniel Scotto's of Whitehall Investment Advisors about what an individual investor can do while the market normalizes.
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Mar 19, 2008
Fed’s delicate economic balancing act
Between bailing out investment banks and making loans to securities dealers, Fed Chief Ben Bernanke and company have been busy lately. The big cut in short-term interest rates boosted the markets, but inflation still looms. Kai Ryssdal has the story.
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