EconTalk
EconTalk: Conversations for the Curious is an award-winning weekly podcast hosted by Russ Roberts of Shalem College in Jerusalem and Stanford's Hoover Institution. The eclectic guest list includes authors, doctors, psychologists, historians, philosophers, economists, and more. Learn how the health care system really works, the serenity that comes from humility, the challenge of interpreting data, how potato chips are made, what it's like to run an upscale Manhattan restaurant, what caused the 2008 financial crisis, the nature of consciousness, and more. EconTalk has been taking the Monday out of Mondays since 2006. All 900+ episodes are available in the archive. Go to EconTalk.org for transcripts, related resources, and comments.
- Update frequency
- every 7 days
- Average duration
- 68 minutes
- Episodes
- 1014
- Years Active
- 2006 - 2025
Why Christianity Needs to Help Save Democracy (with Jonathan Rauch)
How does a nice Jewish boy who is also a gay atheist have the chutzpah to lecture Christianity on its obligations to democracy? Listen to author Jonathan Rauch talk about his book Cross Purposes with…
Rational and Religious (with Ross Douthat)
How can we explain the world's underlying order? How does consciousness emerge? And why do people from such different cultures have such similar near-death experiences? Listen as Ross Douthat, New Yo…
The Music and Magic of John and Paul (with Ian Leslie)
At the heart of the success of the Beatles was the creative chemistry and volatile friendship between John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Listen as author Ian Leslie discusses his book, John & Paul: A Lo…
Do All Creatures, Great and Small, and Made From Silicon, Have Rights? (with Jeff Sebo)
Should monkeys have the same rights as humans? What about elephants, ants, or invertebrates? NYU philosopher Jeff Sebo makes the case for expanding your moral circle to many more beings than you migh…
Bird Brains, Bird Sex, and All Kinds of Beauty (with Matt Ridley)
Bright colors, long tails, and dances of seduction: they may hurt a bird's chances of survival in the wild, but they seem to increase the chances of reproduction. Is this all part of natural selectio…
How Better Feedback Can Revolutionize Education (with Daisy Christodoulou)
Feedback on exams and papers--grades and comments--should be more than an assessment. It should point the way to improvement. So argues educational consultant Daisy Christodoulou, emphasizing that ac…
Will Guidara on Unreasonable Hospitality
What can the restaurant business teach us about leadership and management? Listen as Will Guidara, the former owner of Eleven Madison Park, explains to EconTalk's Russ Roberts how his restaurant beca…
The Unusual World of Israeli Democracy (with Rachel Gur)
Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East but it seems a lot more alien and chaotic than many of the older democracies of the West. Hear Rachel Gur of Reichman University explain to EconTalk's …
The Struggle That Shaped the Middle East (with James Barr)
Until the end of WWI, the Middle East as we know it didn't exist. No Israel, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, or Iraq. Instead, there was the Ottoman Empire, whose dissolution using an arbitrary line on a map…
Who Won the Socialist Calculation Debate (with Peter Boettke)
For more than a century, some economists have insisted that central planning can outperform markets. Economists like Mises, Hayek, and Friedman disagreed. Who won this debate? Is it over? Does AI cha…
Minimalists and Hoarders (with Michael Easter)
Why do we buy stuff we don't need? Maybe for the same reason that some people can't stand stuff at all. Listen as author Michael Easter speaks with EconTalk's Russ Roberts about how two seemingly opp…
Coase, the Rules of the Game, and the Costs of Perfection (with Daisy Christodoulou)
Surely perfection is better than imperfection. But applying technology to improve decision-making can backfire. Listen as ed-tech innovator Daisy Christodoulou and EconTalk's Russ Roberts talk about …
Why AI Is Good for Humans (with Reid Hoffman)
Should we worry about the human future in a world of AI? Reid Hoffman is unafraid and even optimistic. He argues that the brave new world that awaits is going to be great for humanity. Listen as he t…
Weep, Shudder, Die: The Secret of Opera Revealed (with Dana Gioia)
How can opera, with words we rarely understand, make us cry? Why does opera, filled with melodrama, move us? Listen as poet and librettist Dana Gioia explains to EconTalk's Russ Roberts why words mat…
Will DOGE and Musk Make a Difference? (with Michael Munger)
Can Musk use DOGE to reduce the size and power of the bureaucracy and big government? Michael Munger of Duke University thinks not, but EconTalk's Russ Roberts isn't so sure. Listen as they discuss t…
Understanding the Settler Colonialism Movement (with Adam Kirsch)
Under settler colonialism, you're either a settler or indigenous and the sin of the founding of America, Australia, and Israel, for example, is not just a past injustice but a perpetuating mistake th…
The Power of Nuance: Lessons for Public Health (with Emily Oster)
Public health officials should tell the truth, even when it's complicated. Even when some people might misunderstand. Otherwise, says economist Emily Oster of Brown University, the public will come t…
Fixing Sick Cities (with Alain Bertaud)
Why are European cities charming and American cities often so charmless? Simple, says urbanist Alain Bertaud: most American cities are zoned for single-family housing. The result is not enough custom…
Is This War With Lebanon Different? (with Matti Friedman)
Is Israel's war with Lebanon going to end differently from past attempts to secure Israel's northern border? Journalist Matti Friedman, who recounted his experience as a soldier in Lebanon in his boo…
Why Industrial Policy Is (Almost) Always a Bad Idea (with Scott Sumner)
Tariffs are in the air. Will they help or hurt Americans? Listen as economist Scott Sumner makes the case against tariffs and various other forms of government intervention that go by the name of ind…