Samantha Fields

Senior Reporter

SHORT BIO

Samantha Fields is a senior reporter at Marketplace.

She’s particularly interested in how the economy affects people’s everyday lives, and a lot of her coverage focuses on economic inequality, housing and climate change.

She’s also reported and produced for WCAI and The GroundTruth Project, the “NPR Politics Podcast,” NPR’s midday show, “Here & Now,” Vermont Public Radio and Maine Public Radio. She got her start in journalism as a reporter for a community paper, The Wellesley Townsman, and her start in radio as an intern and freelance producer at “The Takeaway” at WNYC. She is a graduate of Wellesley College and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Latest Stories (524)

Wesleyan ditches legacy admissions

Jul 20, 2023
But many schools are expected to hang on to legacy admissions for financial reasons.
Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images

Financially, FEMA may not be equipped to handle climate change

Jul 20, 2023
The Federal Emergency Management Agency's disaster relief fund is likely to be in the red sometime next month.
While FEMA will be able to find the cash to handle disasters like hurricanes and tornadoes, funding for rebuilding or mitigation programs are running thin.
Scott Olson/Getty Images

Why prices of some EVs are falling

Jul 19, 2023
As companies announce price cuts on their electric vehicles, they hope to encourage more customers to shell out.
EVs still only make up 7% of the U.S. market, and price is a significant factor.
FREDERIC J. BROWN / Getty Images

What to look for as bank earnings reports start rolling in

Jul 13, 2023
Coming after a series of bank failures, the quarterly results indicate the sector's financial condition and offer clues about the larger economy.
Johannes Eisele/AFP via Getty Images

Wages have started to outpace inflation. But let's not get too excited.

Jul 12, 2023
Wage growth beat inflation in May and June for the first time since March 2021. But economists say two months do not a trend make.
In an ideal world, "economists think that workers should get an increase each year in their pay of around 2% to keep pace with inflation, and an additional 1 to 1.5% to keep pace with productivity growth," says Julia Pollak, chief economist at ZipRecruiter.
Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images

Minimum wage gets a mini increase in some states

Jul 7, 2023
The federal minimum wage has been the same since 2009: $7.25 an hour.
Wage increases, even small ones, can be very impactful for low wage workers dealing with inflation.
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

As student loan repayments are set to restart, the Education Department looks to ease the transition

Jul 3, 2023
For one thing: the first year after payments restart, borrowers who fall behind won’t be penalized.
Student loan borrowers demand President Biden use "Plan B" to cancel student debt Immediately at a rally outside of the Supreme Court on June 30, 2023 in Washington, D.C.
Paul Morigi/Getty Images for We The 45 Million

Risk of electricity shortages rises with extreme heat waves

Jun 28, 2023
Supply shortfall caused by spiking demand during extreme summer weather could affect two-thirds of the U.S.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images

A muffin? That'll be $5.50. (Thank inflation.)

Jun 21, 2023
Inflation is cooling, but food prices are still much higher than they were a year ago. Bakery products, in particular.
Blue Sky Bakery in Brooklyn, New York, has had to raise its prices to keep up with its costs.
Samantha Fields/Marketplace

New house construction is booming. Here's why most of it isn't affordable.

Jun 20, 2023
There may be more supply, but it tends to cater to demand at the higher end of the income spectrum.
Over the past decade or so, new home construction slowed and still hasn’t caught up with demand.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images