Week of August 13th, 2012

A New Orleans bassist lost everything he owned through Hurricane Katrina. He talks about how his life has progressed since 2005 and what he learned while picking up the pieces.

A long-time real estate agent in New Orleans talks about the strides made and the challenges being faced in the housing market there.

A fisherman's son escapes Vietnam to New Orleans, only have to have to escape again.

More than 30 people were killed after police in South Africa fired on striking miners. How might the incident impact the nation's mining economy?

Police in South Africa fired on striking miners yesterday and more than 30 people were killed. We look at how the incident could affect the mining industry. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have new bailout repayment terms which could make the government delay some tough decisions. Online auction site eBay is putting a ban on all supernatural products. Kai Ryssdal talks to Jess Walter about his new book “Beautiful Ruins,” on 1960s Hollywood and the American Dream. And Sylvester Monroe looks at the difficulties with economic mobility where Chicago’s housing projects used to be.

Marketplace's Sylvester Monroe visits his childhood home — a demolished public housing project in Chicago — to see who made it out and who's moving up the economic ladder.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac get some slack on repaying government bailout funds. But they’ll have to shrink their businesses faster than planned.

Host Tess Vigeland visits one Los Angeles neighborhood, where the impact of the foreclosure crisis is more than just financial. Plus, seven years after Hurricane Katrina, a jazz musician reflects on life after losing everything. And New Orleans native Wendell Pierce — you may still call him “The Bunk” — updates us on his dreams of a Big Easy grocery store.

Reviewing the week's headlines on Wall Street and beyond. This week: On the latest consumer sentiment survey and what's going in Europe.

Credit unions used to be a banking oasis free from fees. But slowly, credit unions are starting to charge for checking accounts and raising minimums to avoid fees.

As Baby Boomers age, younger generations are fearing the day they'll be shouldering the burden to pay for Boomers' Social Security benefits. But one senior says Baby Boomers will help boost the economy, not drain it.

In his new book, novelist Jess Walter crosses the globe and four decades, digging into the American Dream and what it means to succeed — and fail — in love and work.

Spells, curses, potions and psychics are being dropped by the online auction site.

A new report out from Bloomberg this morning shows that hiring in the London financial services industry is down, while at the same time it is picking up in New York.

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

Crossroads GPS hits North Dakota's Heitkamp with the second round of ads in as many weeks

The band's official crime is "hooliganism by religious hatred." But to many inside and outside Russia, the case has come to represent considerably more than that.

There's word this morning that the Treasury Department is going to revamp its financial relationship with the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The city of Dallas Texas has authorized the first aerial spraying of pesticides since the 1960s to stop an outbreak of West Nile virus. Dallas County has seen nearly 200 cases of the mosquito born illness and ten deaths.

President Obama has launched a new campaign ad defending his record on Medicare. At the same time, of course, President Obama has attacked Romney's running mate Paul Ryan for his plans to cut Medicare.

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

A mass shooting of platinum miners in South Africa is a reminder that our precious metals come from some pretty unstable places.

The American Civil Liberties Union is filing information requests with nearly 500 police departments in 38 states having to do with License Plate Reader cameras, or LPRs. Apparently, tens of thousands of them are being used around the country. The cameras help police spot cars that may be wanted, but according to the ACLU, the problem lies in the fact that the cameras store people’s license plate numbers for a long time, and there’s not that much known about how the technology is actually being deployed.

The news that didn't quite make the headlines. This week: The Californians Help Eliminate All The Evasive Registration Scofflaws program, the morning playlist of the Mars rover Curiosity, and a printer that can make a house.

More than thirty workers have been killed by police at a platinum mine in South Africa. The workers, who were armed, were staging what police said was an illegal strike.

In South Africa, more than 30 workers have been killed by police at a platinum mine. The workers, who were armed, were staging what police said was an illegal strike. In Illinois today, unionized workers at a Caterpillar plant will vote on a contract to end a four month strike of their own — a strike that has put the state’s governor in an awkward position. And you know the look… guys around the office in button-down shirts and khaki slacks. We take it for granted now as the business casual “uniform,” but it wasn’t always. So how did the modern office dress code come to be?

The aid, which dates from the Great Depression, could end when Congress acts on the next farm bill. The World Trade Organization has ruled it's an illegal subsidy, and legislators are looking for budget items to slash.

The ACLU is asking questions about the use of License Plate Reader cameras.

Democratic governors caught between general support of unions and cutting unionized state employees.

Voters in a California town will weigh in on a new tax that would charge businesses a penny for every ounce of sugary drinks they serve.

How the Aloha State, aging boomers and a bad patch in the economy changed what we wear to work.

How does our garbage relate to our GDP? Economist Michael McDonough has worked out the GDP-to-trash economic indicator.

Farmers in Colombia struggling to make money off of cacao are returning to an old standby commodity: cocaine. A popular restaurant in Los Angeles is paying its diners to turn in their phones at the door. We look into the world of “fun consultants.” College students are getting their tuition refund checks, but what are they spending them on? There’s an international convention for crime fighters going on in San Antonio, Texas. Kai Ryssdal talks to economist Michael McDonough about an unlikely economic indicator: trash. And our series on China’s Street of Eternal Happiness continues with a look into the life of a tattoo artist making a living on Shanghai’s Changle Road.

Among the street's many noodle shops and fashion boutiques, one artist's tattoo store represents a changing China.

Trust falls, scavenger hunts, outdoor team-building — these are activities best left to the professionals.

The beginning of the new semester means that many students receiving financial aid can look forward to large "refund" checks from their grants or loans.

The top fighters of financial crime are gathered in San Antonio this week, and it's not just gumshoes. Merchants, credit card companies and banks are well represented.

But after the recent massive power outages in the country, some Indians are concerned that the money should be invested in infrastructure instead.

Today starts with some more tepid economic news. The number of people applying for unemployment benefits ticked up slightly to 366,000 last week.

Heavy-hitting outside groups release five negative ads in 24 hours

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

Some farmers who took up cocoa farming in place of coca are returning to the crop from which cocaine is made.

Someone who recently visited a gas station in the small Michigan city of Lapeer is about to be very rich. That's where the winning Powerball ticket was sold, and the jackpot is $337 million. So what's up with these huge lottery jackpots recently?

One restaurant in Los Angeles tries something new to get patrons to turn off their phones: a 5 percent discount on their meal.

The attorneys general of New York and Connecticut have sent subpoenas to several banks, including JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup. When it comes to banking scandals, it's state regulators who are out in front.

In the midst of the U.S. financial crisis, the economist Luigi Zingales became known for hyping a "managed bankruptcy" for the big banks. That way the banks' private investors, creditors and executives would bear most of the costs of their bad investments.

The other shoes have finally dropped in the LIBOR investigation. Seven other shoes, in fact. Attorneys general in New York and Connecticut have subpoenaed seven of the world's biggest banks, including Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase here in the U.S.

A hint of optimism about climate change.

Target, Walmart, Lowe’s, 7-11, Best Buy, a whole bunch of big retailers are teaming up on a new mobile payment system. It’s called Merchant Customer Exchange or MCX and it will let you pay for things using your smartphone. They’re not the only ones trying this. Google has the Google Wallet system. AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile are planning to launch one soon as well. So why is everyone racing to join in? It’s all about being most popular, and eventually getting the most data from you.

today, there's word that a number of other banks — including JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup — are being subpoenaed by regulators in New York and Connecticut. It's all about charges that the banks rigged an interest rate called LIBOR.

Today there’s word that a number of banks, including JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup, are being subpoenaed, by regulators in New York and Connecticut. It’s all about charges that the banks rigged an interest rate called LIBOR. Facebook, which went public in May with a stock price of $38 a share, is now down to around $21 a share. And today, that price could drop further, when a lockup ends and insiders are able to sell their shares. And as the worst drought in 50 years continues to send grain prices through the roof, several governors are asking the federal government to end a mandate that requires some of the nation’s corn to be used for ethanol.

Data on customers is a lot more valuable than mere sales.

Today, over 1.6 billion shares could hit the market in several waves. A huge shareholder sell-off could open the door to talent poaching by competitors.

In light of a possible global food crisis during this drought, many are calling for a stop to the federal mandate that requires gasoline to have corn-based ethanol.

Rivals to the Apple iPad release new tablets almost every week. For many, a lower price is their big selling point.

Australia has told big Chinese automakers Chery and Great Wall to recall thousands of vehicles after discovering asbestos in their auto parts.

Pitchman William Shatner appeared to have perished in a Priceline ad in January. So why is he back on air as the Priceline “Negotiator?”

Some generation Y entrepreneurs are turning the idea of going into the family business on its head — by hiring their parents to work at their fledgling companies.

Catfish farmer Townsend Kyser discusses what the USDA's purchase of meat to help livestock producers hit by the drought will do for him and other farmers.

The government’s new Deferred Action plan for younger undocumented immigrants has been welcomed by many but some immigrants hesitate to apply.

Young undocumented immigrants can now legally work in the United States if they apply for the work permit program that began today — but is the permit worth the $500? Facebook insiders can start selling their shares tomorrow. Mobile payment systems are making purchasing more convenient, but there may be a hidden price. China’s economy is growing, but Chinese investors are putting their money elsewhere. Young entrepreneurs are redefining the ‘family business.’ Kai Ryssdal talks to Walter Latham, the producer of “The Original Kings of Comedy,” about his new venture with YouTube. And we learn about why Priceline resurrected William Shatner’s “Priceline Negotiator” character.

Slower growth in China and the prospect of currency depreciation have many Chinese putting their money into places like Canada and the U.S.

The comedy mogul who created "The Original Kings of Comedy" was recently one of four African Americans selected to partner with YouTube. He said his plan is to become the "better version of BET…but for the web."

The latest test of Facebook stock comes tomorrow with the removal of lockups on employee and insider shares.

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

This is a Marketplace.org Reader

Republican ads say Obama's promise of 'hope and change' hasn't materialized for voters.

The best place for a budding business might not be where you think.

There are 23 new hour-long dramas debuting on the broadcast networks this fall, but only two will be shot in L.A. County. What's causing TV to look outside of Hollywood?