Freakonomics Radio
by Freakonomics Radio + Stitcher
Latest episode
695. Can the U.S. Close Its Fertility Gap?
695. Can the U.S. Close Its Fertility Gap?
About this podcast
Freakonomics co-author Stephen J. Dubner uncovers the hidden side of everything. Why is it safer to fly in an airplane than drive a car? How do we decide whom to marry? Why is the media so full of bad news? Also: things you never knew you wanted to know about wolves, bananas, pollution, search engines, and the quirks of human behavior.
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Episodes
The newest 50 of 948 episodes
- 695. Can the U.S. Close Its Fertility Gap? · 56 min · Episode 695Americans are having fewer children than they want. Government attempts to boost birth rates haven’t done much. But new research points to a surprisingly simple way to help — and…
- 694. Does Democracy Really Need Elections? · 1 h 4 min · Episode 694Stephen Dubner recently served on a criminal jury. Twelve strangers — selected randomly and barely paid — took the job seriously. Afterward, he wondered: why can’t our politics…
- What Now? with Trevor Noah | Michael Che: The Unspoken Rules of Comedy · 10 minSNL writer and Weekend Update anchor Michael Che joins Trevor and Eugene in this episode preview. Watch What Now? with Trevor Noah on Youtube or tune-in anywhere you listen to…
- 693. What’s Our Job as Humans Anymore? · 58 min · Episode 693It may just be being human. Stephen Dubner interviews A.I. performer Tilly Norwood to find out if we are as replaceable as we fear. (Part two of a two-part series.)
- 692. What Will A.I. Do to (and for) Human Creativity? · 59 min · Episode 692Writers, designers, actors, coders, musicians, thinkers — they’re all worried about being replaced by machines. But what if the A.I.s are actually here to help? (Part one of a…
- Are Private Equity Firms Plundering the U.S. Economy? (Update) · 48 minThey say they make companies more efficient through savvy management. Critics say they bend the rules to enrich themselves at the expense of consumers and employees. Can they…
- 691. Is This What a “Good Billionaire” Looks Like? · 43 min · Episode 691David Rubenstein, a product of the old bipartisan D.C., made his fortune in private equity. He’s been spending it on “patriotic philanthropy” and institutions like the Kennedy…
- 690. It’s Show Business, Baby! · 1 h 1 min · Episode 690Podcasting started as a niche-nerd pursuit. Now it’s a $9 billion industry. Is that a lot? The strange economics of this thing we do.
- 689. Here’s Why Your Hamburger Just Got So Pricey · 49 min · Episode 689An economist calls America’s beef industry a “miracle.” An antitrust scholar calls it “broken.” Maybe they’re both right?
- 688. When Is a Bet Not a Bet? · 51 min · Episode 688That’s the question at the heart of a battle between Kalshi and state gambling regulators. As prediction markets boom, there are other questions, too — about insider trading…
- 687. Are Prediction Markets the Best Forecasting Tool Ever — or Just Another Casino? · 49 min · Episode 687The promise is that they can beat the experts at predicting inflation, elections, and FDA approvals. But right now, roughly 90 percent of the action is sports. Is this a future…
- How to Be a Double Unicorn, with John Urschel | Better in Person · 33 minHe was thriving in the N.F.L., but then he decided to focus on mathematics — a subject he now teaches at M.I.T. John walks Stephen Dubner through the whole story, teaches him…
- 686. Why Is It So Hard to Find an NFL Quarterback? · 58 min · Episode 686For decades, teams have tried (and mostly failed) to predict which college quarterbacks will thrive in the pros. Is the science finally catching up? Stephen Dubner speaks with a…
- Amazon Was Supposed to Kill the Bookstore. James Daunt Had Other Plans | Better in Person · 32 minHe started with one small shop in London. He has since resuscitated both Barnes & Noble and Waterstones. He tells Stephen Dubner exactly how he does it. If you'd like to see the…
- 685. How to Survive the A.I. Shock · 58 min · Episode 685Gina Raimondo, a former commerce secretary and governor, thinks A.I. will create plenty of jobs in the long run. She also thinks a poorly managed transition could tear the…
- How to Run an Institution in an Anti-Institution Era | Better in Person · 38 minAnne Pasternak (Brooklyn Museum) and Michael Roth (Wesleyan University) tell Stephen Dubner how they keep the peace in the middle of a culture war. If you'd like to see the…
- How to Return Stolen Art (Update) · 51 min · Episode 543Museums are purging their collections of looted treasures. Can they also get something in return? And what does it mean to be a museum in the 21st century? (Part 3 of an updated…
- “I Trust Almost Anyone More Than Myself” | Better in Person · 43 minThe Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Jennifer Egan talks about confidence, luck, and why it takes 35 drafts to get to the finish line. If you'd like to see the video version of…
- Is a Museum Just a Trophy Case? (Update) · 53 min · Episode 542The world’s great museums are full of art and artifacts that were plundered during an era when plunder was the norm. Now there’s a push to return these works to their rightful…
- Meet Warren Zanes, the Author and Rocker Behind the Springsteen Movie | Better in Person · 51 minWhen he joined the Del Fuegos, his big brother’s band, all Warren knew how to play was a record player. Things went great for a while — and then it all fell apart. So how did he…
- The Case of the $4 Million Gold Coffin (Update) · 54 min · Episode 541How did a freshly looted Egyptian antiquity end up in the Metropolitan Museum of Art? Why did it take Kim Kardashian to crack the case? And how much of what you see in any museum…
- What if Being a Stranger Is Actually Your Superpower? | Better in Person · 34 minAngela Buchdahl was the first Asian American to be ordained as a rabbi, and now she is among the most influential rabbis in the world. She and Stephen Dubner talk about…
- 684. He Helped Clean Up the Last Crash. Does He See Another One Coming? · 1 h 6 min · Episode 684Former S.E.C. chair Gary Gensler has had a front-row seat to numerous financial booms and busts. How does he feel about America’s massive bet on A.I.? “Something has to give.”
- Does it Take a Twisted Mind to Write Twisted Stories? | Better In Person · 45 minHarlan Coben doesn’t think so. The mega-best-selling author talks suburbia, impostor syndrome, and what he learned from his college friend David Foster Wallace. If you'd like to…
- 683. In the New Space Race, Who Makes the Rules? · 56 min · Episode 683Governments started the space age. Now, billionaires and private firms are reinventing it. Guest host Steve Levitt explores what the past can teach us about a high-stakes future…
- How Gary Gulman Turned Depression Into Comedy Gold | Better in Person · 47 minGary and Stephen talk about creativity, recovery, getting fired, and holding grudges. They also get outside and play basketball, which is a big part of how Gary stays well. If…
- 682. Should A.I. Move to Space? · 48 min · Episode 682At first it sounds ridiculous. But it might be inevitable. Guest host Steve Levitt talks to a team that hopes to push A.I. infrastructure off the planet. (Part one of a two-part…
- Why Cooking is Caregiving, with Chef Hillary Sterling | Better in Person · 43 minHillary Sterling was a Brooklyn kid raised on cream cheese sandwiches and canned potatoes. So how did she become one of New York City's best chefs? The Ci Siamo executive chef…
- Are You Really Allergic to Penicillin? (Update) · 1 h 5 min · Episode 617Like tens of millions of people, Stephen Dubner thought he had a penicillin allergy. Like the vast majority, he didn’t. This misdiagnosis costs billions of dollars and causes…
- How a Great Architect Thinks, with Bjarke Ingels | Better in Person · 43 minIs the oxymoron really “the secret sauce to everything”? That’s the case Ingels makes in this debut episode of our new video show Better in Person, filmed in Stephen Dubner’s…
- 681. How to Host a Talk Show, with Dick Cavett · 43 min · Episode 681Stephen Dubner had an idea for a new project. So he drove to Connecticut and knocked on the door of the master. Dubner’s new TV talk show Better in Person launches July 14 on the…
- 680. Can Universities Win Back Our Trust? · 50 min · Episode 680Dartmouth president Sian Beilock, a psychologist by training, made her name studying why people choke. Now she’s applying those insights to one of the most scrutinized jobs in…
- 679. Why Does Vanderbilt Keep Winning? · 1 h 4 min · Episode 679It’s a hard time to run a university: public trust is low, political pressure is high, and finances are fragile. But Daniel Diermeier, who trained as a political scientist, has…
- The World Is (Still) Drowning in Sludge · 55 min · Episode 627Insurance forms that make no sense. Subscriptions that can’t be cancelled. A never-ending blizzard of automated notifications. In this update of a 2025 episode, Stephen Dubner…
- 678. Who Gets to Choose a “Good Death”? · 50 min · Episode 678New York is the latest state to legalize medical aid in dying. Stephen Dubner speaks with the governor who signed the law, a Nobel Prize-winning economist, a death doula — and an…
- 677. Can Backgammon Save Us from Ourselves? · 59 min · Episode 677It brings strangers together. It teaches probability, strategy, and emotional control. It has even helped N.F.L. teams win the Super Bowl. Stephen Dubner explores why this…
- This Is Your Brain on Pollution (Update) · 47 min · Episode 472As the Trump administration rolls back environmental regulations, we revisit a 2022 episode that explored the hidden cost of an invisible threat: air pollution.
- 676. Has America Lost the Plot? · 1 h 5 min · Episode 676Another war in the Middle East. A retreat from the international order. A presidency built on self-dealing and arbitrary power. It’s enough to make you think the U.S. is in a…
- The Vanishing Mr. Feynman (Update) · 1 h 0 min · Episode 577In his final years, Richard Feynman's curiosity took him to some surprising places. We hear from his companions on the trips he took — and one he wasn’t able to. (Part three of a…
- The Brilliant Mr. Feynman (Update) · 53 min · Episode 576What happens when an existentially depressed and recently widowed young physicist from Queens gets a fresh start in California? We follow Richard Feynman out west, to explore his…
- The Curious Mr. Feynman (Update) · 1 h 3 min · Episode 575From the Manhattan Project to the Challenger investigation, the physicist Richard Feynman loved to shoot down what he called “lousy ideas.” Today, the world is awash in lousy…
- 675. Has the New York Times Become a Games Company? · 57 min · Episode 675Not exactly. But their runaway success with games like Wordle says something bigger about the way we live now. (Part one of a series, “We Are All Gamers Now.”)
- 674. How Does a Composer Feel After the World Premiere? · 45 min · Episode 674Great. Then depressed. Then great again. Stephen Dubner gets the full story from David Lang; we also hear from some fans, and the New York Philharmonic’s president. The math and…
- Was Adam Smith Really a Right-Winger? (Update) · 1 h 8 min · Episode 526Economists and politicians have turned him into a mascot for free-market ideology. Some on the left say the right has badly misread him. In this updated replay of a 2022 episode…
- 673. What Is Money? · 54 min · Episode 673That’s what the Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang wanted to learn. So he turned Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations into an oratorio. We tag along as Lang’s piece heads…
- 672. What Makes Judy Faulkner Run? · 1 h 0 min · Episode 672Epic Systems manages the electronic health records for hundreds of millions of people. This makes Faulkner a healthcare heavyweight and one of the most successful female…
- Why Does Everyone Hate Rats? (Update) · 41 min · Episode 622New York City’s mayor called them “public enemy number one.” History books say they caused the Black Death — although recent scientific evidence disputes that claim. In an…
- 671. Why Has There Been So Little Progress on Alzheimer’s Disease? · 1 h 1 min · Episode 671One possibility: a leading hypothesis pursued by researchers (and funders) was built on science that now appears to be fraudulent. Stephen Dubner speaks with the scientist and…
- 670. Beeconomics 101 · 56 min · Episode 670How do beekeepers make a living? Why is there so much honey fraud? And why did billions of bees suddenly disappear? To find out, guest host Steve Levitt activates his hive mind.
- Ten Myths About the U.S. Tax System (Update) · 1 h 4 min · Episode 626Nearly everything that politicians say about taxes is at least half a lie. They are also dishonest when it comes to the national debt. In this update of an episode from 2025…
