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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 (1,998)

Final retail rush kicks off today

Dec 26, 2011
Ten percent to 15 percent of holiday sales occur in the week after Christmas. Discounting is deep this year.

Deep holiday discounts persist

Dec 23, 2011
Retailers are sweetening their offers in the final days before Christmas, which could hurt their bottom lines.

How will the payroll tax cut be paid for?

Dec 23, 2011
The payroll tax cut is expected to be extended for another two months. How will lawmakers come up with the billions it's going to cost?

Mortgage settlement hikes the cost of Countrywide

Dec 22, 2011
Bank of America will pay $335 million to settle mortgage discrimination charges against Countrywide Financial.

Bank of America, Countrywide settle discrimination case

Dec 22, 2011
BofA's costs mount as it settles a mortgage discrimination suit against subsidiary Countrywide Financial.

Wendy's set to take down Burger King as no. 2 in U.S.

Dec 21, 2011
Wendy's appears set to overtake Burger King as the 2nd most-loved burger chain in the U.S., behind McDonald's. What is the company doing so right?

AT&T opts out of T-Mobile merger

Dec 20, 2011
Facing stiff government opposition due to anti-trust claims, AT&T is backing out of what would have been a $39 billion deal