Pitchfork Economics with Nick Hanauer

For most of last year economists and pundits engaged in a long, circular debate about why inflation was spiking around the world, and who was to blame for those skyrocketing prices. Economic experts at the Roosevelt Institute (including past guest Joseph Stiglitz) have finally revealed the root causes of global inflation in a new report. Stiglitz’s co-author, Ira Regmi, shares what they’ve learned.Ira Regmi is the Program Manager for the Macroeconomic Analysis program at the Roosevelt Institute. They support the team’s work on fiscal and monetary policy, unemployment, and growth to ensure an economy that works for all.Twitter: @Regmi_IraThe Causes of and Responses to Today’s Inflation https://rooseveltinstitute.org/publications/the-causes-of-and-responses-to-todays-inflation  Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.comTwitter: @PitchforkEconInstagram: @pitchforkeconomicsNick’s twitter: @NickHanauer

Nick and Goldy kick off the New Year by answering more of your questions! Has there ever been a time period with strong deflation? Should folks prepare for an upcoming recession? Why aren’t we allowed to question the free market? And much more. If you have questions for a future “Ask Me Anything” episode, leave us a voicemail at 731-388-9334.Don’t forget to follow the show wherever you listen and if that happens to be on Apple or Spotify, please give us a 5 star rating or review!Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.comTwitter: @PitchforkEconInstagram: @pitchforkeconomicsNick’s twitter: @NickHanauer

Out of all the topics we discussed in 2022 one stayed at the top of headlines all year long: abortion. We spoke to Professor Caitlin Myers in February of this year, months before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade. She shared data from her research and provided examples of the causal links between abortion access and economic outcomes in women’s lives. It’s an illuminating episode, and one that will be just as relevant in 2023 as it was for all of 2022.This episode originally aired on February 22, 2022.Caitlin Knowles Myers is the John G. McCullough professor of economics at Middlebury College and Co-Director of the Middlebury Initiative for Data and Digital Methods. She’s known for her recent research on the impact of contraception and abortion policies in the United States.Twitter: @Caitlin_K_MyersOpinion: Economists can tell you that restricting abortion access restricts women’s lives https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/11/29/abortion-economics-supreme-courtLack of abortion access will set US women back, economists warn https://www.ft.com/content/61251b31-0041-461c-bd33-aacf2f13fe10What can economic research tell us about the effect of abortion access on women’s lives? https://www.brookings.edu/research/what-can-economic-research-tell-us-about-the-effect-of-abortion-access-on-womens-lives The economic reality behind a Mississippi anti-abortion argumenthttps://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/02/business/mississippi-abortion-law-economy.htmlThe Economic Consequences of Being Denied an Abortion https://www.nber.org/papers/w26662The Turnaway Study https://www.ansirh.org/research/ongoing/turnaway-study Website: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/Twitter: @PitchforkEconInstagram: @pitchforkeconomicsNick’s twitter: @NickHanauer

Judging by the amount of downloads for this episode, we’d say it was our listeners’ favorite from the past year. “Did Corporate Greed Break the Supply Chain?” with Rakeen Mabud from the Groundwork Collaborative exposes how the supply chain was actually designed: not for reliably getting goods to people, but for maximizing profit. Unfortunately, that’s something many Americans came to realize in 2022 as prices skyrocketed and store shelves were left empty.This episode originally aired on March 22, 2022.Rakeen Mabud is the Chief Economist and Managing Director of Policy and Research at the Groundwork Collaborative.Twitter: @rakeen_mabudHow We Broke the Supply Chain https://prospect.org/economy/how-we-broke-the-supply-chain-intro/Corporations Raise Prices as Consumers Spend ‘With a Vengeance’https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/27/business/economy/price-increases-inflation.htmlOpinion: Larry Summers Shares the Blame for Inflation https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/28/opinion/larry-summers-inflation.htmlInflation causing financial strain for nearly half of U.S. households, poll findshttps://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/12/02/inflation-gallup-financial-hardship/Stock Buybacks Beat Capital Spending for Many Big Companieshttps://www.wsj.com/articles/stock-buybacks-beat-capital-spending-for-many-big-companies-11631611802The stock market is punishing Walmart and Target for keeping costs low while the rest of the corporate sector prioritizes profits and makes inflation worsehttps://www.businessinsider.com/walmart-target-keep-prices-low-corporations-prioritize-profits-inflation-worse-2021-11Website: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/Twitter: @PitchforkEconInstagram: @pitchforkeconomicsNick’s twitter: @NickHanauer

A new report from the Economic Policy Institute looks into the salary and stock packages of America’s most overcompensated corporate titans and the numbers are staggering. According to journalist Mark Kreidler, who recently covered the report for Capital + Main, CEO paychecks are a huge contributor to inequality. He joins the podcast to share why more people would do better if CEOs were paid less.We want your questions for another “Ask Me Anything” episode with Nick and Goldy! Call and leave us a voicemail at 731-388-9334.Mark Kreidler is a California-based writer, journalist, and broadcaster. He’s the author of three books, including Four Days to Glory.Twitter: @MarkKreidlerFor America’s Top-Ranked CEOs, Too Much Is Never Enoughhttps://capitalandmain.com/for-americas-top-ranked-ceos-too-much-is-never-enough CEO pay has skyrocketed 1,460% since 1978https://www.epi.org/publication/ceo-pay-in-2021Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.comTwitter: @PitchforkEconInstagram: @pitchforkeconomicsNick’s twitter: @NickHanauer

Inequality has grown so large that a number of pessimists believe America is lost. But Professor Scott Galloway argues that our nation is actually adrift, and in his latest book he explains what needs to be done to fix this imbalance and rebuild America’s foundations. Galloway joins Nick and Goldy for an honest conversation about age inequality, the middle class, corporate consolidation, and more.Scott Galloway is Professor of Marketing at NYU Stern School of Business and a serial entrepreneur. He is the bestselling author of Post Corona, The Four, The Algebra of Happiness, and most recently Adrift.Twitter: @profgallowayAdrift: America in 100 Charts https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/713560/adrift-by-scott-galloway  Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.comTwitter: @PitchforkEconInstagram: @pitchforkeconomicsNick’s twitter: @NickHanauer

Human society is built on social contracts, but decades of neoliberalism have left many of our most fundamental contracts—worker power, social safety nets, trust in key institutions— in tatters. It’s no wonder that people are pissed off: without fairness, we can’t have cooperation, and without cooperation, we can’t have a strong economy… or a strong democracy. Can we restore the social contracts that served us so well, or has our sense of fairness been damaged beyond repair? Oxford economics professor Eric Beinhocker shares his latest research into the psychology and economics of cooperation.Eric Beinhocker is a Professor of Public Policy Practice at the Blavatnik School of Government and the Executive Director of the Institute for New Economic Thinking at the University of Oxford’s Martin School.Twitter: @EricBeinhocker, @INETOxfordFair Social Contracts and the Foundations of Large-Scale Collaboration https://www.inet.ox.ac.uk/publications/no-2022-26-fair-social-contracts-and-the-foundations-of-large-scale-collaboration INET Oxford https://www.inet.ox.ac.ukWebsite: http://pitchforkeconomics.comTwitter: @PitchforkEconInstagram: @pitchforkeconomicsNick’s twitter: @NickHanauer

In one of the highlights of last week’s EconCon Presents event in Washington D.C., Washington Post columnist Perry Bacon Jr. convened an all-star panel of political experts. Maurice Mitchell, Faiz Shakir, and Anna Greenberg joined Bacon to share lessons learned from the midterm elections, and debate strategies for driving the progressive economic agenda forward in 2023 and beyond.Thanks to our friends at EconCon for sharing audio of this event for Pitchfork Economics listeners. For more information about upcoming EconCon events, follow them on Twitter: @EconConPresents. Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.comTwitter: @PitchforkEconInstagram: @pitchforkeconomicsNick’s twitter: @NickHanauer

Kroger wants to buy Albertsons and effectively become the second-largest grocery chain in the United States. This merger would result in less competition, rising grocery prices, and lower wages. Corporate greed has gotten us into this mess, but new federal anti-merger guidelines, and some tenacious Attorneys General, may just get us out. Returning guest Stacy Mitchell explains why mergers like this one are bad news for workers and shoppers alike.Stacy Mitchell is Co-Executive Director of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, a research and advocacy organization that challenges concentrated corporate power and works to build thriving, equitable communities.Twitter: @stacyfmitchellInstitute for Local Self-Reliance: https://ilsr.org Stacy Mitchell Responds to Kroger’s Bid to Buy Albertsons https://ilsr.org/statement-kroger-albertsons-merger  Report: How New Federal Anti-merger Guidelines Can Roll Back Corporate Concentration and Build Local Powerhttps://ilsr.org/rolling-back-corporate-concentration-how-new-federal-anti-merger-guidelines-can-restore-competition-and-build-local-powerWebsite: http://pitchforkeconomics.comTwitter: @PitchforkEconInstagram: @pitchforkeconomicsNick’s twitter: @NickHanauer

If there's one thing we learned from the far-right campaign against voting rights following the 2020 election, it's how fragile our democracy really is. That’s why we’re celebrating Election Day 2022 by revisiting our conversation with Vote.org CEO Andrea Hailey, who explains how voter suppression happens and what reforms would help ensure a truly inclusive democracy. Don’t forget to vote!This episode originally aired in October 2021.Andrea Hailey is the CEO of Vote.org, the nation’s largest nonpartisan digital voter engagement organization.Twitter: @AndreaEHaileyVote.org: https://www.vote.org Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.comTwitter: @PitchforkEconInstagram: @pitchforkeconomicsNick’s twitter: @NickHanauer