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789 episodes
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Freakonomics Radio Freakonomics Radio
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- Society & Culture
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4.5 • 29.5K Ratings
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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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EXTRA: People Aren’t Dumb. The World Is Hard. (Update)
You wouldn’t think you could win a Nobel Prize for showing that humans tend to make irrational decisions. But that’s what Richard Thaler has done. In an interview from 2018, the founder of behavioral economics describes his unlikely route to success; his reputation for being lazy; and his efforts to fix the world — one nudge at a time.
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596. Farewell to a Generational Talent
Daniel Kahneman left his mark on academia (and the real world) in countless ways. A group of his friends and colleagues recently gathered in Chicago to reflect on this legacy — and we were there, with microphones.
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595. Why Don't We Have Better Candidates for President?
American politics is trapped in a duopoly, with two all-powerful parties colluding to stifle competition. We revisit a 2018 episode to explain how the political industry works, and talk to a reformer (and former presidential candidate) who is pushing for change.
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594. Your Brand’s Spokesperson Just Got Arrested — Now What?
It’s hard to know whether the benefits of hiring a celebrity are worth the risk. We dig into one gruesome story of an endorsement gone wrong, and find a surprising result.
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593. You Can Make a Killing, but Not a Living
Broadway operates on a winner-take-most business model. A runaway hit like "Stereophonic" — which just won five Tony Awards — will create a few big winners. But even the stars of the show will have to go elsewhere to make real money. (Part two of a two-part series.)
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EXTRA: The Fascinatingly Mundane Secrets of the World’s Most Exclusive Nightclub
The Berlin dance mecca Berghain is known for its eight-hour line and inscrutable door policy. PJ Vogt, host of the podcast "Search Engine," joins us to crack the code. It has to do with Cold War rivalries, German tax law, and one very talented bouncer.
Customer Reviews
On the media
I love this show. Brooke is so smart. And the kind of smart that brings her listeners along with her. Nit only do I learn a lot from the show, but understand the reasons why, which makes it stick.
Enjoying
I gave up on NPR due to it being completely biased;however, this show is really interesting! I’ve listened to 4/5 episodes and the information is fascinating and objective. Great listen!!
Why we don’t have better candidates
This was one of the worst podcasts I have heard. every idea expressed was either obvious or self-evidently wrong. Yet it also managed to be self-congratulatory.