Marketplace Morning Report for Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Segments From This Episode

• Pfizer recalls a million birth control packs

  by Nancy Marshall-Genzer

  Drug giant Pfizer is asking women around the country to return certain birth control pills under fears they weren't packaged correctly.

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• President Obama announces mortgage refinance plan

  by Nancy Marshall-Genzer

  The president wants to make it easier for homeowners to refinance their mortgages.

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• Turning board games into Hollywood blockbusters

  by Adriene Hill and Jeremy Hobson

  With news that Adam Sandler might be ready to work on a Candy Land movie, we look at whether bringing board games to the big screen can really work.

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• CEO Ron Johnson on revamping JC Penney

  by Adriene Hill

  JC Penney CEO Ron Johnson, formerly of Target and Apple, explains how he hopes to move the company forward — in part by looking back to the heyday of department stores.

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• Criminal charges expected for ex-Credit Suisse traders

  by Nancy Marshall-Genzer

  The government is expected to file criminal charges today against two former traders at the investment bank Credit Suisse for allegedly misstating the value of mortgage bonds back in 2008.

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• Federal prosecutors target former Credit Suisse traders

  by Josh Brown

  Prosecutors are expected to file criminal charges against traders from Credit Suisse for inflating the value of mortgage bonds back in 2008. Why it has taken so long for these charges to be filed?

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• What to do if you’re living next to a foreclosed home

  by David Lazarus

  According to one study, the average hit to a home near a foreclosed home is over $7,000 in property value. What you and your neighbors could do if an abandoned property is in the neighborhood.

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• Amazon’s slow burn, courtesy of the Kindle Fire

  by Jennifer Collins

  The massive e-retailer reports less-that-stellar earnings as it struggles to turn its Kindle Fire from a loss to a profit.

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• The Vegas economy, beyond gambling

  by Sarah Gardner

  Forget about slot machines and blackjack. Las Vegas visitors are increasingly coming to the city to shop, eat and party at the pool.

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• Wall Street’s role in the Facebook IPO

  by Heidi Moore

  After much anticipation, Facebook is expect to file paperwork for an initial public offering soon. Why does it need an investment bank to help?

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• PODCAST: Super PACs, big recalls, and too many snow plows

  by Mary Dooe

  

  Super PACs are allowed to spend unlimited cash, as long as they reveal where the money's coming from — but it is often still hard to know who is making the donations. Gambling isn't the only thing the Nevada economy has to offer in this election year. And does a foreclosed home down the block hurt your chances of staying above water?

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• Required super PAC disclosures don’t reveal all

  by John Dimsdale

  Midnight was the filing deadline for "super" political action committees to reveal where all the big money flowing into the 2012 presidential campaigns is coming from. But still, it could be a while before we know the names of donors.

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• Former British banker gets knighthood revoked

  Fred Goodwin led the Royal Bank of Scotland when it nearly collapsed during the financial crisis in 2008. The queen has now taken away his title of knight, leaving him in some less-than-honorable company.

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