New Books in Economics

In this insightful discussion, Jon Hilsenrath, author of "Yellen: The Trailblazing Economist Who Navigated an Era of Upheaval," highlights Janet Yellen's assertive leadership as the first female Fed Chair. He contrasts her bulldog approach with Ben Bernanke's consensus style, arguing that she viewed the economy as a fire needing immediate action. They delve into her groundbreaking work on inflation targeting, her crisis management during the 2007-2008 financial meltdown, and the ongoing disconnect between economic policies and everyday American experiences.

David Wessel, a two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and director at the Brookings Institution, dives into the tumultuous years of Ben Bernanke's tenure at the Fed. He reflects on the impact of Bernanke's deep understanding of the Great Depression on his decision-making during the 2008 financial crisis. Wessel reveals the complexities of inflation targeting and the personal toll on leaders navigating economic turmoil. He also discusses critical choices, like the failure of Lehman Brothers, and how these decisions shaped public perception of the Federal Reserve.

In this discussion, Amanda D. Lotz, a professor at Queensland University of Technology and author of a compelling new book, explores the evolution of storytelling in the digital age. She emphasizes the shift from mass audiences to microaudiences, revealing how niche content thrives in the modern media landscape. The conversation dives into the impact of streaming services, the redefinition of television quality, and the necessity for diverse narratives. Lotz encourages innovative approaches to engage today's audiences, highlighting the importance of adaptability in storytelling.

More than any other single institution, the US Federal Reserve drives global capital markets with its decisions and communications. While its interest rates are set by a committee, for almost a century, the Fed’s philosophy and operational approach have been moulded by one person: the Chair of the Board of Governors. In the first series of The Chair, Tim Gwynn Jones talked to authors of books about the Fed's foundational Chairs – Marriner Eccles, Bill Martin, Arthur Burns, and Paul Volcker. In this second series, he covers the people who chaired the Fed through the post-1990 period of financialisation, globalisation, and – perhaps today – deglobalisation. The first episode of the second series explores Alan Greenspan, the chairman who followed Paul Volcker and ran the Fed from 1987 until 2006. Once bestowed with “Maestro” status, Greenspan – who turns 100 in March 2026 – has seen his reputation deflate in the wake of the post-2008 financial crisis. To discuss the fallen Maestro, Tim is joined by Sebastian Mallaby, author of The Man Who Knew: The Life and Times of Alan Greenspan (Bloomsbury, 2016). “Greenspan was the man who knew,” says Mallaby. “He was the man who knew that bubbles were extremely destructive, and yet he was not the man who acted against those bubbles. So, whilst he was great on inflation and on stabilising the price of eggs, he was not good on asset-price inflation or stabilising the price of nest eggs”. A former journalist at The Economist and the Washington Post, Mallaby is the prize-winning author of The World's Banker – a portrait of the World Bank under James Wolfensohn – and More Money Than God: Hedge Funds and the Making of a New Elite. He is now the Paul A. Volcker senior fellow for international economics at the Council on Foreign Relations. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/economics

Jack Copley, an Assistant Professor of International Political Economy at Durham University, delves into the complex landscape of financialization in Britain. He explores how the financial sector's growth stemmed from policymakers' responses to crises, rather than a cohesive ideological plan. Copley discusses the historical context of the 1970s and 1980s, revealing the motivations behind key reforms, and unpacks the intricate state-market dynamics that have shaped the current economic landscape, ultimately highlighting the significant implications for global capitalism.

Maliha Safri, a Professor of economics, joins Marianna Pavlovskaya, Stephen Healy, and Craig Borowiak to discuss their book on solidarity cities. They explore the transformative power of cooperative networks in challenging racial capitalism. The conversation highlights diverse initiatives like community gardens and cooperatives that foster social and economic justice. They emphasize counter-mapping as a tool for advocacy and share how these local movements can address unmet needs while building community resilience against systemic divides.

From the workings of financial markets to our response to the ecological crisis, economic theory shapes the world. But where do these ideas come from? Ricardo’s Dream: How Economists Forgot the Real World and Led Us Astray (Bristol University Press, 2024) tells the fascinating story of David Ricardo, Adam Smith’s only real rival as the ‘founder of economics’. The wealthiest stock trader of his day, Ricardo introduced the study of abstract models to economics. He also developed the theory of trade that underpinned globalization and hides, behind its mathematical facade, a history of power, empire, and slavery. Brimming with fresh ideas and stories, Ricardo’s Dream shows how too many economists, from Ricardo’s day to our own, have turned away from observing the real world and led us astray. Nat Dyer is a writer and researcher specialising in global political economy. He is a Fellow of the Schumacher Institute and the Royal Society of Arts. He has worked for Global Witness and for Promoting Economic Pluralism and his stories have been reported on by the BBC, the New York Times and Bloomberg Morteza Hajizadeh is a Ph.D. graduate in English from the University of Auckland in New Zealand. His research interests are Cultural Studies; Critical Theory; Environmental History; Medieval (Intellectual) History; Gothic Studies; 18th and 19th Century British Literature. YouTube channel. Twitter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/economics

Uncle Sam is watching, whether you like it or not. And the surveillance program the United States is building has as its foundation immigrants who have crossed the nation's southern border. In Data Borders: How Silicon Valley is Builidng an Industry Around Immigrants (University of California Press, 2023), UCLA information studies professor Melissa Villa-Nicholas deftly explains how private corporations such as Amazon and Palantir, government agencies including ICE and the CBP, and even public libraries all coordinate to track citizens and non-citizens alike. Mass amounts of data are networked to immigrants, who link people together like nodes on a map. A startlingly relevant book, Villa-Nicholas argues that stories we tell about data, and about human experiences, can either aid or act as a bulwark against this type of mass surveillance. The surveillance state is here, and it was born in the American West. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/economics

Peoples & Things host, Lee Vinsel, talks with Lauren Bridges, Assistant Professor of Media Studies at the University of Virginia, about her work on the political, economic, and environmental politics of big data infrastructures. They focus on some of Bridges’ work on the disconnect between the promises made to localities around digital transformation and the realities of data center power demands and other material factors. They also discuss Bridges’ other projects, including “Geographies of Digital Wasting,” a global collaborative project, which Bridges was co-PI on, tracing the global flows and practices of digital wasting throughout the tech supply chain. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/economics

Saleem H. Ali, Chair and Distinguished Professor of Geography at the University of Delaware, dives into the essence of sustainability. He unpacks its history from the 1992 Earth Summit, discussing the intricate balance between economic growth and environmental conservation. Ali also analyzes impactful concepts like the 'Tragedy of the Commons' and the debate spurred by Ehrlich and Simon's bet on resources. He emphasizes the importance of renewability and corporate responsibility, showing how sustainability can drive profitability while preserving our planet.