Week of May 4th, 2015

Why the music scene in Atlanta draws people from all over.

There’s more economists want to know.

Uber is reportedly among the bidders for Nokia's mapping service.

Two words: California drought.

John Carney and Nela Richardson join Kai Ryssdal to recap the week in business and finance.

Airing on Friday, May 8, 2015: Friday’s non-farm payrolls report showed that 223,000 jobs were added in April and that wages have barely grown. But some economists wish that more information was in the report. We talk with experts about what they think should have been included. Next: the death of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old black man who died in custody following his arrest, is just one of the latest in a string of incidents involving alleged police brutality. In our series “Behind the blue line,” we’ve been taking a step back to explore the job of policing—the changing technology, the training, the push for more workplace diversity. Today we’ll take a look at workplace morale for your average cop. Officers are stressed and it’s affecting how they do their jobs. But when Marketplace’s Sally Herships sat down to talk to two veteran cops, she found out something surprising.  

But first, there's the chase.

Police officers say they have less discretion about how they do their jobs.

Lauren Lyons Cole talks about chasing financial goals.

On this episode, Anita Hill speaks with Lizzie O’Leary about chasing workplace gender equality. Marketplace Tech’s Ben Johnson explains how law enforcement uses “stingrays” to track phones. Also, Lauren Lyons Cole of The Street talks about the best accounts to use to chase personal finance goals, and the BBC’s Jonathan Frewin gets literal, chasing a story about racetracks in Kuwait. Later, we explore the chase in the stock market, police pursuits and the Atlanta music scene.

Airing on Friday, May 8, 2015: There’s fresh-out-the-oven jobs number today. According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. economy added 223,000 new jobs in April. And the employment rate hit a seven year low at 5.4 percent. Next, we check in with our partner at the BBC on the re-election of British Prime Minister […]

Airing on Friday, May 8, 2015: A new California app has taken the act of observing and videotaping police up a notch or two. All bystander videos shot by smartphones are backed up to a cloud server owned by the American Civil Liberties Union. Similar apps have come out in a couple of other states, but California’s – just released last Friday – is getting lots of downloads. Next: at a meeting of  European ministers on Monday, Greece will outline its plans to meet its debt obligations. The country’s socialist government is refusing to cut certain public sector and pensions spending, and yet says it can and will meet its debt repayment obligations. We explore Greece’s plan and how creditors and other eurozone nations are reacting to it.

Airing Friday, May 8, 2015: We’ll receive the latest jobs report later today. We check in with our reporter Mitchell Hartman on what to expect in today’s number. Across the Atlantic, the seemingly endless Greek debt crisis continues. The eurozone finance minister will decide whether to release $8 billion in bailout money.Flint, Michigan started to draw its water from the Flint River, which residents say has made their tap water undrinkable. 

Airing on Friday, May 8, 2015: In our series “Behind the Blue Line,” we’ve been taking a step back to look at the job of policing. One week ago today the American Civil Liberties Union of California launched a mobile app to help people videotape police. Next, it looks like bitcoin is here to stay, at least the concept of it. We check in with one startup at Tech Crunch Disrupt in New York to find out more. And it’s Friday! In today’s Silicon Tally, we talk with Lily Hay Newman, staff writer for Slate, on numbers from this week’s tech news. 

A new app automatically sends videos of police officers directly to the ACLU.

A growing interest in cooking has given small appliances a comeback.

  The plight of the bankrupt city of Flint, Michigan has long stood as the poster child for post-industrial job loss and blight in the U.S. On top of all Flint’s struggles, providing clean drinking water has become one the biggest problem facing the struggling city. U.L. Brown has seen a lot of changes since he moved […]

Greece will outline its plans to meet its debt obligations.

The numbers we're reading ahead of Mother's Day weekend.

How well have you kept up with the week in tech news?

They've grown from just a handful across the country to hundreds.

McDonald's plans to implement kale in its menu.

Airing on Thursday, May 7, 2015: Whole Foods says it’ll start a new chain aimed at millennials. We explore why the supermarket chain is planning a spinoff. Next: as President Obama makes the case for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, we look at the last big trade deal that cast a long shadow on trade talks in this country—NAFTA. How does its legacy influence the public discourse, perception and politics around the TPP? We explore. 

Dissecting the teardown process in technology.

The tricky tech behind Disney World's MagicBands.

The company says it’ll start a new chain aimed at those darn millennials.

Drug company acquisition and inequality in the British election

Airing on Thursday, May 6, 2015: First up, we check the pressure in the global stock market. Alexion—a biotech company with a single drug company— is buying Synageva, a biotech company with a single drug on the market. Yet, they’re two of many biotech companies that are betting on a business in which they develop a drug for a rare disease and charge a ton for it. Next,  voters go to the polls in a general election in Britain today. Inequality has been a key theme of the campaign. It has been getting some traction from one policy in particular: a plan to close a tax loophole.     

Airing on Thursday, May 7, 2015: First, we talk with Neema Singh Guliani, the legislative counsel with the American Civil Liberties Union, about the U.S.A. Freedom Act. Next, we chat with Chester Wisniewski, Senior Security Advisor at Sophos, about what a single, European digital marketplace could mean for Europe’s cloud storage industry. Finally, an Austin-based program called three Day Startup teaches kids to code, build an app, and pitch it to venture capitalists – all in the course of a couple of weeks.  It’s part of a trend toward teaching kids complex skills in a short period of time.

It takes a lot of manpower to send money across borders.

What impact does the economy has on the outcome of this day?

Alexion, which has one drug on the market, is purchasing Synageva, which has none.

They conceive, plan and pitch in just three days.

Here are the numbers we are watching on Thursday

Incumbent Prime Minister David Cameron said he'd reevaluate the U.K.'s membership.

Some patients are spending years there, and spending more in the process.

Companies like Google, Amazon and Facebook would face tighter rules overseas.

The guys behind "Freakonomics" answer that question and more in their new book.

Airing on Wednesday, May 6, 2015: While it’s believed that hospice care at the end of life can save money, a report from the New England Journal of Medicine suggests otherwise. It found that for patients in nursing homes, spending went up by about $6,800 per patient. We explore the reasons why costs are so high. Next: there’s been talk about the possibility that Microsoft — along with other tech giants — may purchase Salesforce.com, a site that offers “customer relationship management” tools. The company is worth $40 billion, and yet it doesn’t make profits. We look at what Saleforce does, and find out why it’s worth so much.     

The plan could be a radical change for the way the EU does business online.

So the Pats all-but-surely did it, now what's the punishment?

Microsoft is a possible bidder for the "customer relationship management" company.

Instead of drafting actual players, comedian Greg Proops put together an ideal business team for us.

Oil prices fluctuate, Hollywood banks, and burial goes "green"

Exploring the relationship between studios and theater owners.

Airing on Wednesday, May 6, 2015: The price of oil continues to rise, but for how long? This morning we check on the latest in the global energy market. Next, the for-profit prison industry is adjusting as the number of U.S. inmates is falling. Finally, British voters will take part in the tightest national election for decades this week. We explore how Scotland could hold the balance of power in tomorrow’s election. 

Airing on Wednesday, May 6, 2015: We’re coming to you from Tech Crunch Disrupt in New York this week, exploring the hackathons, the start-ups and the founders. Then we talk to the head of user design at Vine about innovation in video production. Of course, the start-ups would have a tough time getting started without the venture capitalists. For that, we talk to Susan Lyne, an investor whose clients include Rupert Murdoch and Martha Stewart. 

Has the financial sector learned?

The U.S. is sending fewer people to prison, but profits still come in.

Here are the numbers we are watching on Wednesday

In all, five stores were looted and burned during riots in April 2015.

Well-known for its calculators, Texas Instruments has also been making headway in the auto industry.

The lack of transparency behind trade deals is a worry for critics.

You could say it's a different type of bird.

It may well not be about the economy

Airing on Tuesday, May 5, 2015: As the debate over the Trans-Pacific Partnership rumbles on, we explain one aspect – the secrecy surrounding negotiations. What role does it play in fueling the controversy around the trade deal? Next: Pharmacy chains such as CVS, Walgreens and Rite Aid began moving into inner cities decades ago as supermarkets left those regions. We explore their impact on West Baltimore. 

Kai Ryssdal talks to Scott Tong about fracking chemicals found in drinking water

The Brandeis professor's 1991 Senate testimony will be revisited in a forthcoming HBO feature film.

The oil market, food industry, and how taste and nutrition are linked.

Airing on Tuesday, May 5, 2015: With the April jobs report out this week, we take a look at the labor market. Plus, while the Affordable Care Act is expanding addiction treatment, most programs lack the infrastructure to keep up with the vision laid out by Obamacare. Finally, we talk with Mark Schatzker about his new book, “The Dorito Effect.”

Airing on Tuesday, May 5, 2015:  New York Mayor Bill de Blasio announced this week a $70 million investment to bring internet to 50,000 low-income homes over the next decade. We speak with Maya Wiley, council to the mayor, about project. MIT Professor of Economics and Business administration Richard Schmalensee talks to us about the current state of solar energy. Finally, we resume our conversation with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella on tech opportunities in India and the industry’s gender pay gap.   

Addiction treatment programs lack the ability to meet the vision of the ACA.

The FTC says Sysco and U.S. Foods together would control too much market share.

Nadella says he's learned a lot since his comments on women in tech last year.

"The Dorito Effect" discusses the link between good food and good health.

Here are the numbers we're watching and the stories we're reading Tuesday.

Texas is looking to ban local bans on fracking, and it's not alone.

The company plans to cut costs, boost revenue, buy back its own shares.

Airing on Monday, May 4, 2015: There’s news today that Goldman Sachs, one of the top investment banks, is in talks to get out of a key business: specifically the raw commodity, coal. That’s according to the Wall Street Journal today. The internet search and advertising giant Google has its hands full in Europe, where antitrust regulators have accused it of abusing its power to, among other things, favor its business partners in Google results. In February, President Obama warned the EU to be sure that any antitrust action not be quote “commercially-driven,” a suggestion that Europe might be out to help its home-grown companies. Google denies wrongdoing. For more on that, we talk to Margrethe Vestager, the European Commissioner for Competition leading the case.   

Airing on Monday, May 4, 2015: When executives run for office, their record in business can be a double-edged sword. They can cite their experience in executive decision making, but there are also plenty of bad business decisions that will get picked over. As former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina formally enters the 2016 race, we look at the political peril that comes with a business record. Plus: McDonald’s plans on revamping the company by increasing the number of restaurants it franchises and buying back more shares. 

We look at the political peril that comes with a business record.

Social media stocks are volatile. With good reason.

Thor totally got the short straw.

…and it's more than toys: Got room in your house for an "Avengers" waffle iron?

At some schools, they're more about college prep than college credit.

April's payroll, Obama's non-profit, and the so-called "landmen"

Airing Monday, May 4, 2015:  This week, Microsoft’s Ignite Conference gets underway in Chicago. We catch up with the CEO of Microsoft Satya Nadella to discuss what the company is trying to do with business and information technology workers around the world. More on that. Podcasts are gaining popularity everywhere. With reportedly a billion podcast subscriptions in the world, the  technology does come with its challenges. Makers and advertisers don’t always know how the content is consumed. We explore the world of podcasting and podcast advertising. 

The company's huge size and long history complicate its efforts to keep up

Obama will help start a nonprofit version of the government initiative

Margrethe Vestager says Google is misusing its hold on the search market.

The people who oil companies pay to get the rights to drill for oil lose out.

The investment bank could leave this type of business all together

Microsoft is having an interesting moment and Nadella is thinking big.

Here are the stories we're reading and numbers we're watching Monday.