Jon Hilsenrath of The Wall Street Journal joins Julia La Roche on episode 43 to discuss his new book, "Yellen: The Trailblazing Economist Who Navigated an Era of Upheaval."
In this episode, Hilsenrath discusses his decision to write a book about Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and her husband, Nobel laureate economist George Akerlof, in the form of a love story. He highlights the couple's central role in economic debates over the years. He aims to humanize top figures in economics while also incorporating historical lessons and personal lessons about work, family, and more. He also touches on the imperfect nature of capitalism and democracy, the importance of rebuilding trust in institutions, the state of journalism, and his own experiences as the son of a war refugee. He also shares how he got a C in Economics 101 at Duke (Full disclosure: Julia also got a C in Econ 101 at UNC).
Hilsenrath is a senior writer for The Wall Street Journal, where he has written about economics and finance since 1997. He has worked as a writer and editor in Hong Kong, New York and Washington, D.C. Many of his stories have focused on causes and consequences of economic and financial crises. He was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2014 for his coverage of the Federal Reserve; part of a WSJ team that was a Pulitzer finalist in 2009 for coverage of the financial crisis; and contributed on-the-ground reporting to the WSJ’s 9/11 coverage which won a Pulitzer in 2002. He graduated from Duke University in 1989 and was a Knight-Bagehot Fellow and M.B.A. graduate from Columbia Business School in 1996.
0:00 Intro
0:45 A shower idea
2:00 A love story
3:17 4 lessons for breaking glass ceilings
7:35 What did Yellen get right? What did Yellen get wrong?
10:00 Recency bias in economics profession
12:28 Larry Summers
15:00 Late to the Biden Administration
17:00 She’ll be the Treasury Secretary for a little longer
17:55 Yellen, Summers’ approach to an airport
20:30 Human behavior in economics, markets
22:40 Human screw up on both sides of the equation
24:30 Hilsenrath’s takeaways
27:33 Trust is a mess
30:26 Examining issues through Yellen’s story
31:00 Rebuilding, restoring trust
34:58 Hilsenrath’s family story
38:10 Are you proud to be a journalist?
41:59 Jon and Julia both got a C in Econ 101
45:21 Explaining economics through the book, “Yellen”
46:17 Thoughts on “Fed Whisperer” nickname
52:22 Parting thoughts
