Mitchell Hartman

Correspondent

SHORT BIO

Mitchell’s most important job at Marketplace is to explain the economy in ways that non-expert, non-business people can understand. Michell thinks of his audience as anyone who works, whether for money or not, and lives in the economy . . . which is most people.

Mitchell wants to understand, and help people understand, how the economy works, who it helps, who it hurts and why. Mitchell gets to cover what he thinks are some of the most interesting aspects of the economy: wages and inflation, consumer psychology, wealth inequality, economic theory and how it measures up to economic reality.

Mitchell was a high school newspaper nerd and a college newspaper editor. He has worked for The Philadelphia Inquirer, WXPN-FM, WBAI-FM, KPFK-FM, Pacifica Radio, the CBC, the BBC, Monitor Radio, Cairo Today Magazine, The Jordan Times, The Middletown Press, The New Haven Register, Oregon Business Magazine, the Reed College Alumni Magazine, and Marketplace (twice — 1994-2001 & 2008-present).

Mitchell has gone on strike (Newspaper Guild vs. Knight Ridder, Philadelphia, 1985) and helped organize a union (with SAG-AFTRA at Marketplace, 2021-23). Mitchell once interviewed Marcel Marceau and got him to talk.

Latest Stories (1,997)

Job market improving as jobless claims drop

Oct 11, 2012
New weekly claims for unemployment fell last week to the lowest level in four and a half years. Combined with last week's employment report, the claims data provides evidence of a slowly improving job market.

Could Lance Armstrong's brand be tainted by doping scandal?

Oct 11, 2012
The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency has released a report on alleged doping by retired cyclist and cancer survivor Lance Armstrong. But support for Armstrong's charitable organization Livestrong may be immune.

Supreme Court affirmative action case a test for employers

Oct 10, 2012
The Supreme Court's review of racial preferences in college admissions won't invalidate racial considerations in hiring.

Corporate earnings expected to disappoint

Oct 9, 2012
Companies in the S&P 500 predict lower third-quarter earnings by a four-to-one margin.

Congress: Chinese telecom companies pose threat

Oct 8, 2012
A panel of the House Intelligence Committee warns U.S. telecom companies not to do business with Huawei Technologies and ZTE Corp.

Could the jobs statistics be rigged?

Oct 5, 2012
The unemployment numbers pass from Census surveyors to career civil servants at the Bureau of Labor Statistics to the political appointees in the administration. But safeguards to protect the integrity of the data abound.

7.8% unemployment rate is lowest since 2009

Oct 5, 2012
U.S. employers added 114,000 jobs in September, according to the Labor Department's latest report. Economists say that it's a slightly positive indicator -- but not a particularly strong one. Many say that even more jobs needed to be created to keep the economy growing. The drop in the unemployment rate may reflect revisions to data out during the summer that may be stronger than originally thought.

Debate night recap: It's the economy, Big Bird

Oct 3, 2012
After a night focused on numbers, tax cuts, and deficits, the takeaway discussion points may well end as Big Bird and moderator Jim Lehrer.

Millennials get their favorite TV and the debates too

Oct 1, 2012
Young viewers might watch the CW channel during the presidential debates, but they'll still keep up with politics via social media.

Debate Night: It's the economy, smarty-pants

Oct 1, 2012
President Obama and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney meet for a debate on domestic policy. According to moderator Jim Lehrer's notes, the first three topics will be: the economy, the economy, and the economy.