Selgin on the Fed

George Selgin, of the University of Georgia, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about whether the creation of the Federal Reserve in 1913 has been a boon or a bust for the U.S. economy. Drawing on a recent paper by William Lastrapes and Lawrence White recently released by the Cato Institute, "Has the Fed Been a Failure?" Selgin argues that the Fed has done poorly at two missions often deemed to justify a central bank: lender of last resort and smoother of the business cycle. Selgin makes the case that avoiding bank runs and bank panics does not require a central bank and that contrary to received wisdom, it is hard to argue that the Fed has smoothed the business cycle. Additional topics discussed include whether the Fed has the information to do its jobs well, the role of the Fed in moral hazard, and the potential for the gold standard to outperform the Fed.

You can listen to Selgin on the Fed online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Selgin on the Fed is an episode from EconTalk Archives, 2010 by Library of Economics and Liberty.

This episode is 1:18:07 long.

This episode was published on Dec 6, 2010.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from EconTalk Archives, 2010 when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.