Week of July 27th, 2020

Less rapping, but plenty of drama.

Government relief has boosted some incomes, and shutdowns have made it harder to spend.

Plus: What’s going on with the economy (and whether Americans’ savings accounts are ready for it), how loss leaders work and the state of labor organizing in a pandemic.

What does it mean for the rest of the world if countries have dibs on vaccine doses?

What the history of union movements can teach us about worker power during the pandemic.

We asked Brian Ronaghan, Marketplace’s director of product, to tell us about his search into why an old interview about the Book of Revelation was spiking online.

Lots of industries rely on loss leaders to get you in the door while quietly raising prices on other products.

If you’ve struggled to get through to the unemployment office, you should still be able to file and get weeks or months of back pay.

Marketplace presents three hourlong specials with hosts Molly Wood, David Brancaccio and Kai Ryssdal.

What technology will help us transition to a post-pandemic future?

The dollar is set for its biggest monthly decline in a decade. Analysis finds that Black and Latino workers are having their state unemployment claims rejected at disproportionately higher rates. And, the fight to save bananas from extinction.

Black and Latino workers made up nearly 40% of the unemployed, but were less than 20% of aid recipients.

In the peak summer season, hotels are usually at least 80% full.

The eurozone saw its largest contraction on record with declines of more than 10% each in Germany, France, Italy and Spain. Life after lockdown for a restaurant group in Lithuania. Airlines worry travel restrictions are stifling passenger demand.

Amazon’s big step to build out a network of satellites to provide high-speed internet. A Yale study finds expanded jobless benefits are not the reason people haven’t returned to work. And, the state of the hotel industry right now.

A small bioscience startup in Britain is taking on a disease that threatens one of the world’s favorite fruits.

Yale research says there were a lot of reasons people did not go back to work that were more important, like lack of child care or the fear of getting COVID-19.

Hundreds of thousands of teachers lack either the hardware or the connection to teach online.

Who says Congress can’t get anything done?

Plus: defining “disinflation,” teachers prepare to head back to school and the economics of the NBA’s Florida “bubble.”

Historically marginalized workers are overrepresented among public employees, and many could be laid off.

Slowing inflation isn’t as dangerous as prices dropping for a long period of time. But it’s important to keep disinflation in check.

Medical appointments via phone and video have boomed for everything from physical therapy to counseling, even in rural states.

The league wants to keep players happy while quarantined. The athletes feel empowered to make an impact.

The director trained his lens on the people of Paradise, California, whose lives were transformed after their town was ravaged by fire.

Some choose to quit due to health concerns rather than go back into the classroom.

Even if a fully effective vaccine can be developed and deployed quickly, it won’t mean an immediate return to normal life or business.

In the second quarter, GDP contracted at an annual rate of nearly 33%. Regionally, economic activity declined far more in areas reliant on sectors like manufacturing and tourism. Plus, how Quebec is trying to help local businesses stay afloat.

It’s by far the worst quarterly plunge ever.

More than 1.4 million laid-off Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week

And that’s despite the company spending billions of dollars hiring new workers and beefing up safety measures.

They’ve broken ground on a battery facility that could help the utility meet state energy storage requirements.

Le Panier Bleu is meant to help local stores compete with online retail giants.

Democrats and Republicans appear no closer to reaching a deal on a COVID-19 relief bill. What does Fed Chair Jerome Powell think about that? Strong second-quarter earnings expected for Amazon. What utility PG&E can expect from a deal with Tesla.

Germany saw a large drop-off in consumer spending and in its vital export sector. China’s Huawei takes Samsung’s crown as the world’s biggest smartphone seller. Kenya’s flower industry starts to blossom again.

COVID-19 is limiting human contact, but bots are stepping in to fill the void by cleaning, making deliveries, even providing companionship.

Plus, we’ll answer some other listener questions about the coronavirus relief bill and how weirdly hard it is to unload your extra coins.

Plus the latest from the Federal Reserve, big retailers’ Black Friday plans and why a gap year isn’t an option for most college students.

Walmart, Target and Best Buy won’t open on the holiday this year to jump-start the traditional extreme-shopping weekend.

A Sallie Mae survey finds most students will return to college in the fall — online or in person.

Workers hope to strengthen an industry that has become even more precarious.

Many states don’t have the luxury of borrowing to get through the crisis. Without more federal aid, they have few options

Two workers share how the pandemic has changed their month-to-month finances.

One of Britain’s most successful industries struggles to recover from the pandemic.

The Fed said while the economy has rebounded from the low in March and April, the pandemic will have lasting effects.

Some who have lost jobs because of COVID still have not filed for unemployment benefits, even though they’re eligible.

Four CEOs of Big Tech companies testify before Congress. Investors consider second-quarter earnings from GM, Boeing and more. And, you’ll be able to watch Universal Pictures movies at home sooner after their releases thanks to a new deal with AMC.

Members of Congress believe that these companies are abusing their power. But have they done anything illegal?

People of color are almost twice as likely as white people to be worried about how to pay for care if they get COVID-19.

The coronavirus pandemic forced Ford, GM and Fiat Chrysler to close factories and halt production. They’re expected to report large losses.

It’s a whole new ballgame when it comes to how Defector staffers will operate their digital media company.

The owners, who employ many Asian immigrant workers, face mounting costs and fewer customers as they try to keep their doors open.

People of color are almost twice as likely as white people to be worried about paying for care if they get COVID-19, a new study shows. The pandemic’s effects on big automakers. And, former Deadspin staffers start a new company.

The French government has launched a crisis distillation scheme to deal with an oversupply of wine. Turkey has new social media laws. Saudi Arabia expects major losses with fewer people at the Muslim hajj pilgrimage.

Do they work or is this just a form of health security “theater”? “These are generally not medical devices,” reporter Meghan McCarty Carino explains.

Ahead of Wednesday’s Big Tech hearing, we’re talking misinformation and hate speech with New Yorker staff writer Andrew Marantz.

The USDA program is designed to help people facing food insecurity.

The Republican bill includes some exceptions, like firms that act with gross negligence.

Plus: America’s new multigenerational homes, what comes after “Our Black Year” and the behavioral economics of wearing a mask.

Money in jobless people’s pockets can stimulate the economy, but longer unemployment payments could slow a recovery, experts say.

The glossies have been struggling as fashion, culture and readers change.

As the economy struggles, the meaning of “growing up” seems to be shifting. But the trend of adults living with parents started before the pandemic.

Public health professionals have been advocating for masks for months, yet pockets of stiff resistance remain.

Maggie Anderson has dedicated herself to Black economic empowerment by buying from Black-owned businesses. But it isn’t easy.

It’s a plan to ensure that post-pandemic economic recovery is built around promoting racial equality.

As States attempt reopening, and see COVID-19 cases flare, what does the science say about risky situations?

This Thursday, we’re going to find out what happened to U.S. GDP in the second quarter. Google is adding a new undersea cable network. The Trump administration’s plans to regulate social media. And, Marketplace’s new podcast kids and their families.

One major difference from the Democrats’ bill is a sharp decrease in the amount of money for pandemic unemployment assistance.

Some local officials have turned to their wine producers that have distilleries to tackle a sanitizer shortage.

We now have two competing bills for COVID-19 relief after Senate Republicans released theirs Monday. Plus, the latest on President Trump’s picks for the Fed. And, a French solution for hand sanitizer shortages.

One mom spotted a lack of diversity in magazines for young Black girls in the U.K. So she started her own. Malaysia’s former prime minister is convicted in 1MDB financial scandal. Google announces a new transatlantic data cable.

The central bank’s board of governors is designed with checks and balances, so one member’s influence would be limited.

Ruby wants a new phone, but her parents aren’t so sure. So we’re going to help her negotiate to get what she wants — through the power of compromise.

A recent study looked at how artificial intelligence is used to determine care. It found that many of the algorithms used in medicine use race as a variable.

Google employees aren’t heading back to the office for another year. So what does that mean for the rest of us?

In March, many lab experiments ground to a halt. Now, researchers are figuring out how to start again.

Studios are struggling to find the best way to release new movies during the COVID-19 pandemic.

When there’s no other good answer, people buy gold.

We’ll also look at China’s live-streaming marketplace and reopened box office. Plus: How do you enforce a mask mandate?

With mixed messaging coming from the government, community college dean Derrick Lindstrom says acting appropriately comes down personal choices.

Some confrontations with customers have turned ugly.

They have been a lifeline for laid-off workers. They also boost demand and enable businesses to focus on staying afloat.

Struggling retailers hope livestreaming will provide a lifeline. Aspiring influencers don’t always strike it rich.

Pharmaceutical executives are expected at the White House Tuesday to talk drug prices. What will Fed Chair Jerome Powell have to say about the economy this week? And, in California, Latino communities continue to bear the brunt of the pandemic.

The president is expected to meet with pharmaceutical industry executives, who are opposed to the changes, on Tuesday.

Latinos make up nearly 39% of the state’s population but more than 55% of confirmed cases.

Republicans are expected to roll out their trillion-dollar coronavirus relief package today. A 17% jump in the number of people in the U.S. relying on food stamps. And, how have plant-based meat companies fared during COVID-19?

European travel shares plummet amid concerns of a slow economic recovery from the pandemic. What’s in the Philippines’ COVID-19 recovery plan? Restaurants struggle with an increase in “no-shows” after lockdown.

Beyond Meat reports quarterly results Monday, which may offer a glimpse into how the sector is doing.

More than six million people signed up for food stamps in just three months, more than in the first 17 months of the Great Recession.

Scientists are using both decades-old methods combined with new ones to find a way to prevent the disease.