Marketplace®
Every story is an economic story

Stacey Vanek Smith

Reporter, Marketplace

Stacey Vanek Smith is a former senior reporter for Marketplace.

Latest from Stacey Vanek Smith

  • Unemployed construction workers demonstrate outside the district office of Assembly Speaker Karen Bass, in Los Angeles, Calif over the failure of the legislature to pass a state budget.
    David McNew/Getty Images

    California is on the brink of financial disaster. The Golden State is $42 billion in debt and lawmakers still haven't agreed on a budget. If they don't come up with a plan, California might be facing bankruptcy. Stacey Vanek-Smith reports.

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  • Movie audience
    Getty Images

    The movies "Confessions of a Shopaholic" and "The International" open this weekend. But will viewers be entertained by a movie about our pre-recession consumption or one about our current banking crisis? Stacey Vanek-Smith reports.

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  • Live Nation and Ticketmaster may merge
    http://www.livenation.com/ and http://www.ticketmaster.com/

    If reported merger talks between Live Nation and Ticketmaster come to fruition, the new company could centralize power in the music industry and potentially drown out competition. Stacey Vanek-Smith reports.

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  • Window sticker advertising Visa and MasterCard credit cards in San Francisco, Calif.
    Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

    With consumer credit-card debt climbing, banks are shifting marketing strategies to get their plastic in the hands of more financially stable customers. Stacey Vanek-Smith reports.

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  • People pictured through 3D glasses
    Roslan Rahman/AFP/Getty Images

    A few years ago, 3D was supposed to be the next big thing in movies. But last time we went to the theater, most movies were flat on the screen. Stacey Vanek-Smith explains why the movie industry has yet to completely enter the third dimension.

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  • AP news on an iPhone
    (Courtesy of Associated Press)

    The technology on a smart phone can show marketers everything you do, from your purchases to transactions made through online banking. But Stacey Vanek-Smith reports why that wealth of information has its limits.

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  • A shopper carries a bag advertising a sale.
    Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

    The 2008 holiday shopping season was one of the worst ever. Retailers offered a lot of sales, but it didn't get people to hit up the stores. As Stacey Vanek-Smith reports, all those markdowns have created an expectation from consumers and put retailers in a bad spot.

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  • Hand sticks pin into balloon with $100 bill.
    iStockPhoto

    In this economy, it seems like everything is on sale — homes, clothes, stocks, cars. What could be wrong with that, right? Lots of things. In this installment of the Marketplace Decoder, Stacey Vanek-Smith explains deflation.

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  • Bernard Madoff walks down Lexington Ave to his apartment in New York City
    Don Emmert/AFP/Getty Images

    Bernard Madoff's victims should know soon how much money they can recover from his scheme. Meanwhile, investors are suing hedge funds for putting their money into his fund, and that could prompt more regulation. Stacey Vanek-Smith reports.

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  • A stack of catalogs
    Courtesy of Gov Gab blog

    Sales of luxury goods are down. But even for shoppers who can afford to splurge, flaunting your moneybags is not so cool. So, high-end shoppers are turning to catalogs to spend their money and it's working out pretty well. Stacey Vanek-Smith reports.

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