Planet Money PM does a pop culture draft: 1999 edition
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Dec 17, 2025 Dive into a fun pop culture draft that takes you back to 1999! The hosts select their ultimate teams with a movie, song, and wild card, debating picks like 'The Insider' for its corporate themes and 'Bills, Bills, Bills' for its finance insights. They tackle iconic selections such as 'Blair Witch' for its viral marketing success and 'Napster' for revolutionizing music distribution. With lively discussions and nostalgic memories, who will take home the crown? It’s a clash of pop culture and economics!
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1999 As A Cultural-Economic Moment
- 1999 produced a remarkable cluster of enduring pop-culture hits across movies and music.
- The hosts frame that year as uniquely fertile for stories that intersect with economics and business.
The Insider As A Journalist's Touchstone
- Wailin Wong describes The Insider as her favorite film and a vivid dramatization of corporate pressure on journalism.
- She highlights the CVS/CBS lawsuit scare and a memorable Al Pacino courtroom phone scene that stuck with her.
Low-Cost Horror, Huge Returns
- The Blair Witch Project exemplified a new low-cost, high-return indie film model and viral marketing ahead of its time.
- Kenny links that film to the modern Blumhouse horror production approach and Planet Money coverage of Jason Blum.