Lessons from Pandemic Unemployment Benefits: When Government Generosity Becomes Necessity
The U.S. government swung into action when the ranks of the pandemic unemployed swelled almost beyond recognition. Three years on, economist...
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Economics Amplified
The Becker Friedman Institute at the University of Chicago supports inquiry on significant economic and policy questions.
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20 of 46 episodes
The Hidden Economic Forces That Determine How Much You Earn
How much effect do government policies have on doctors’ wages? And when those wages are high, does it drive inequality in other jobs? And ho...
A Case for Public School Choice? Lessons from Los Angeles
When the Los Angeles Unified School District combined some neighborhood high schools into Zones of Choice, schools had to compete for studen...
Do You Even Crypto, Bro?
The use of cryptocurrency is on the rise, but who exactly is on the bandwagon? Chicago Booth’s Michael Weber has examined the crypto market...
Social Distancing in 2023: The Economic Costs of Lingering COVID Fears
Many, if not most, citizens of working age have gone back to their jobs in the three-plus years since the start of the pandemic – but not ev...
Harvesting Green Investments: The Promise and Perils of ESG
In the stock market, we all want to do well, but for some investors it’s also important to do good. In this episode, Chicago Booth’s Lubos P...
How Debt Relief Raised Debts: The Untold Story of the Student Loan Moratorium
Did borrowers and the American economy benefit from the federal government’s 2020 student debt moratorium? The picture is complicated accord...
Quid Pro Vote: The Politics and Economics of Vote-Buying
Vote-buying, or influencing voters’ decisions through favors or gifts, is pervasive in areas such as Latin America, Africa, and Southeast As...
Misperceived Truths: Global Support for Women in the Workplace is More Than You Might Think
Around the world, people underestimate support for basic women's rights. In new research, UChicago Economics' Leonardo Bursztyn documents th...
Inflation: The Good, The Bad, and the Baffling
Nobody ever wants to pay more for anything, especially when prices rise drastically – but can inflationary episodes be good for the economy?...
Sometimes Bigger IS Better: The Case for Bringing Rural Healthcare to Urban Hospitals
When rural patients need care that local medical facilities can’t provide, what’s the best way to ensure they get the care they need? Econom...
Social Media Algorithms: How You’re Curating a Biased News Feed
Social media behaviors, moving at an ever faster pace, may not reflect what users really want, according to new research from economists Sen...
Evaluating US Healthcare 3 Years after Lockdown
At the third anniversary of COVID-19 lockdowns, this episode takes a look at ongoing healthcare market failures and the pandemic’s role in m...
Scavenging for Answers: The Human Toll of Vulture Population Collapse
What can vultures and economics tell us about the cost of losing a keystone species? New research from environmental economist Eyal Frank of...
Law of Unintended Consequences: Welfare Reform and Crime
Does welfare prevent crime — and offset its cost to taxpayers? UChicago economist Manasi Deshpande joins to discuss her novel research study...
Economics of Discrimination: How to Measure Systemic Injustices
How can discrimination by race, gender, or other factors be measured – especially when its causes may be systemic in nature? Chicago Booth’s...
What Drives Racial Differences in Speeding Tickets and Fines?
New research finds minorities are 24-33% more likely to be stopped for speeding and will pay 23-34% more in fines, relative to a white drive...
2023: An Economic Nudge for the New Year
Can ‘nudges’ improve your New Year’s resolutions? Today we’re looking back at one of our most popular episodes. Host Tess Vigeland sat down...
China Faltering? Why the End of Zero Covid Won’t Fix Its Economic Problems
Podcast note: Please enjoy this episode from season two of The Pie, an economics podcast from the Becker Friedman Institute for Economics. S...
Economic Warfare: Are Russian Sanctions Working?
Podcast note: Please enjoy this episode from season two of The Pie, an economics podcast from the Becker Friedman Institute for Economics. S...