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Wanna see a trick? Give us any topic and we can tie it back to the economy. At Planet Money, we explore the forces that shape our lives and bring you along for the ride. Don't just understand the economy – understand the world.

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Planet Money

Wanna know who is really in the top 1%? And how they use their influence? It may not be who you think.

Look beyond Silicon Valley. Look beyond Wall Street. Look beyond the “oligarchs”. There's a much larger class of wealthy Americans hiding in plain sight. And, often, they got rich in mundane ways. They own car dealerships. They sell hot dogs and frozen mini-quiches. They run waxing salons. They supply fabricated metal and urinal cakes. They are dentists.

Collectively, these "Main Street millionaires" control much more wealth than the billionaire lightning rods who launch rockets into space, appear on manosphere podcasts, and have Hollywood movies made about them. Many of these millionaires have also grown rich enough to afford superyachts, 10,000-square-foot homes, and pet tigers. 

At the center of their story is a quiet revolution in the American economy: the rise of a particular kind of private business. On today’s show, how did the power of the “stealthy wealthy” millionaires come to rival that of the billionaire oligarchs? And, how are they shaping policies that lower their taxes and raise your prices?

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This episode was hosted by Greg Rosalsky and Sarah Gonzalez. It was produced by Emma Peaslee. It was edited by Marianne McCune with fact checking help from Sierra Juarez. It was engineered by Kwesi Lee. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money’s executive producer. 

Music: NPR Source Audio - "Collectible Kicks," "Blazed and Emboldened," and "Arturo’s Revenge

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Middlegarchs are the new Oligarchs

(Note: A version of this episode originally ran in 2024.)

$40,000,000,000,000. Four commas. Thirteen zeroes. It’s an eye-popping, almost infinite-sounding pile of money. And every time the debt passes a big round number, almost everyone asks the same question: How much debt is too much?

It’s maybe the most important question in macroeconomics. It’s also surprisingly hard to answer. When two economists tried to answer it back in 2010, it ignited a research slugfest that lasted a decade. 

We did a show on this question in 2024, outlining everything we know and don’t know about when the national debt becomes a problem. But a lot has changed. Interest rates have risen and stayed high. Spending has steamrolled ahead. Doves have become hawks. 

So on today’s show, we update our 2024 episode to revisit the age-old question: Is our debt finally too much? 

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Our original episode was produced by Willa Rubin and edited by Molly Messick. This update was reported and produced by Vito Emanuel. It was fact checked by Sierra Juarez. It was engineered by Kwesi Lee. And it was edited by Alex Goldmark, Planet Money’s executive producer. 

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Is our national debt finally too much? (update)

Did a pizza restaurant’s humble status page change how we wait forever? 

When you order a Lyft or Uber, you get texts every few minutes about your car approaching and arriving. When you have a package coming, you get a notification when it’s shipped, when it’s en route, and when it’s out for delivery. Why do so many companies send these constant updates?

We have a theory: It’s because of Domino’s. In 2008, Domino’s launched the Pizza Tracker, a novel tool that delighted customers by allowing them to obsessively monitor their pizza’s progress from order to oven to delivery. The Pizza Tracker became a canonical model for other companies trying to improve their customers’ experiences of waiting for all kinds of products and services. And now? Pizza Trackers are everywhere. 

On today’s show: how the Domino’s Pizza Tracker shaped the internet, and how trackers went from transparently sharing information with consumers to — in some cases — actively deceiving us. 

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This episode was hosted by Nick Fountain and Alex Mayyasi. It was produced by Sam Yellowhorse Kesler, edited by Liza Yeager, fact-checked by Sierra Juarez and engineered by Cena Loffredo and Jimmy Keeley. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money’s executive producer.

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The Domino’s Pizza Tracker Theory of Everything

Margin borrowing and sports gambling “investments” are both on the rise! Today on the show, two stories from Planet Money’s daily podcast The Indicator about the ways investing is changing, and getting riskier.

According to one study, more than half of Gen Zers are using investment dollars for sports gambling. On average, this is not a smart strategy for the long term. It might be that sports betting today is like day trading was for a previous generation of young investors: something a lot of young people, typically men, do, lose money at for a while, then quit. We review the early research on this trend and meet a state legislator proposing ways to stem problem gambling.

More, generally younger people are also investing with borrowed money. Trading on margin is at an all time high of over $1.5 trillion. In the past, high levels of margin investing have led to crashes. We hear those stories and find out what the Fed might do to reign in the risk. 

Related Indicator episodes
— How AI might mess with financial markets
— Prediction markets are threatening national security. Who's gonna fix it?

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— Sign up for The Indicator’s weekly link round up newsletter!
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Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.

These episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money were produced by Corey Bridges and Cooper Katz-McKim. They were engineered by Travis Hagan and Cena Loffredo, and fact-checked by Sierra Juarez. They were edited by Julia Ritchey and Kate Concannon. 

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How investing is getting riskier (Two Indicators)

There is a new type of loan that is sweeping through the country right now. It’s advertised as a super quick and super easy way to get a mortgage to buy a home. In recent years, Wall Street has been funneling billions of dollars into these loans. 

But these loans are also raising questions. Are they a financial innovation that’s helping the housing market? Or ... a sign that Wall Street might be forgetting the mistakes that led to the Global Financial Crisis? 

On today’s show, we head to Baltimore, where abandoned rowhomes have become a familiar sight. Reporters Hallie Miller, Jack Bologna and Sahana Jayaraman from The Baltimore Banner have been following this new loan as it’s been bringing millions of dollars into some of Baltimore's most distressed neighborhoods. 

But, a few years ago, two local landlords quickly and quietly amassed what might be one of the largest private real estate portfolios in Baltimore: Over 700 homes and $100 million dollars in borrowed cash. Using this hot new loan. And then they tried to disappear. We talk with the Banner reporters about what they found at the heart of this mystery, and why it might have implications for the rest of the country. 

Read the Banner’s reporting:

The housing hustle igniting a foreclosure crisis in Baltimore
Before mass foreclosures, DSCR loans looked good for Baltimore 
Could a few 'bad actors' upend Baltimore's housing hopes?
Baltimore will investigate New York investor group for housing discrimination 
Baltimore is striking fear into private lenders across the country 
From $3.7M to $9.9M: Federal probe focuses on 42 Baltimore homes sold again and again
The FBI is investigating the New York investors behind Baltimore’s foreclosure wave
Fake deeds, real money: New York investors accused of another Baltimore scam
How do you build a huge portfolio of Baltimore rentals? It helps to know a guy.
The loans behind Baltimore’s foreclosure crisis are surging in cities across the nation 
Baltimore ballroom ‘icon’ survives a life of grit with glamour

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This episode was hosted by Jeff Guo. It was produced by Sam Yellowhorse Kesler and edited by Jess Jiang. It was fact-checked by Sierra Juarez and engineered by Travis Hagen. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money’s executive producer. 

Music: Universal Production Music - "Slick Groove," "Seven Secrets," and "Jazz Move"

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The loan at the heart of a new foreclosure crisis

In this economy it is boom times and doom times all at once. The statistics aren’t really capturing it. K-shaped only goes so far as a metaphor. So … we asked you to help. And you delivered! 

One one hand, the stock market is on a prolonged, upward trajectory. Unemployment is low and inflation has come down from its peak. But on the other hand, inflation is frustratingly sticky and higher than we want, job turnover is extremely low making looking for work an endless grind, and more than 75% of Americans say they’re stressed about money. 

So we asked you – our listeners – how is the economy working for you? We got a range of responses. Some people are going to great lengths to save money and make ends meet, others are thriving and feel kind of guilty about their good fortune. We also heard from a new generation being shaped by this economic moment into hyper cost-conscious shoppers. You might call them the inflation generation. Each story helps us understand what’s actually going on in the economy and what the stats aren’t capturing. 

Read: 
Our book: Planet Money: A Guide to the Economic Forces That Shape Your Life 
Our Game: Sell Me A Sasquatch about the hilarious chaos of monstrous dealmaking.
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Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.

This episode of Planet Money was produced by Emma Peaslee and edited by Alex Goldmark. Reporting help from Charlotte Isidore. It was fact checked by Sierra Juarez, and engineered by Robert Rodriguez. Special thanks to all our listeners and all of you who wrote in to let us know how you’re doing. 

Music: NPR Source Audio - "What I Need," "Feel the Love," and "Red Line"

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Cost-cutting, quiet guilt and the inflation generation

One week ago, President Trump announced a deal that would give the “U.S. control of more than 65 BILLION BARRELS of proven Oil Reserves in Venezuela, at no cost to the American Taxpayer.”

The exact nature of this deal has been … obscure, to say the least. But today, we wanted to know, from someone who’s been through this before, what does this mean for Venezuela?

José Ángel Pereira Ruimwyk is both optimistic … and wary. He’s a longtime Venezuelan oil insider. When Venezuela invited in foreigners, decades ago, he was there to greet them. And when Venezuela wanted them out? Well, that’s how he ended up in a jail cell. 

On today’s show, we’re going to hear from one third-generation Venezuelan oilman who has seen everything … up until this, of course.

Check out our other episodes about Venezuela: 
 - Chevron, Venezuela and the Paradox of Plenty
 - How Venezuela imploded 

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Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.

This episode was hosted by Nick Fountain and Erika Beras and produced by Emma Peaslee with help from Sam Yellowhorse Kesler. It was edited by Marianne McCune. It was fact checked by Emma Peaslee with help from Sierra Juarez. It was engineered by Josephine Nyounai with help from Jimmy Keeley. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money’s executive producer. 

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Trump drinks Venezuela’s milkshake

To a lot of people, Palantir is a mystery — what does the company know, what data do they have, and (if they have it) what do they do with it all? We dig into that mystery and take you to a singles event to see if Big Data is good for Big Dating.

That event, deep in the heart of Manhattan, is called: “Singles Dating Matching Using Palantir Data.” The evening promised: “Data analysis!” and “Pattern matching!” We decided that we needed to know more. 

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This episode was hosted by Amanda Aronczyk, produced by Sam Yellowhorse Kesler and edited by Jess Jiang. It was engineered by Cena Loffredo and Maggie Luthar and fact-checked by Sierra Juarez. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money’s executive producer.

Music: Universal Production Music - "Silvana’s Theme," "Masseria Del Sud," Sunset in Florence," and "An Italian Romance"

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Love in the time of Palantir

The brilliance of "9 to 5" is that it is catchy even though it’s also kinda depressing. You will be dancing along. You're enjoying it. And, then when you really listen to the lyrics, you're like, Wait, this is messed up. This is real. This is a problem we need to fix. Like, why does it have to be this way?

That is the spirit of the song, why it became an anthem, and the heart of the movie 9 to 5. 

There’s so much to say about Dolly Parton, about her music, acting career, her business savvy, not to mention Dollywood. Today though, we wanted to bring you the audacious true story of 9 to 5, the movie and the song. 

Between the 1960s and 1980s, there was a real sense that big workplace changes were just beyond the horizon. At the time, a very common job for women was clerical work. In 1973, a group of secretaries in Boston formed a women's labor organization. They called themselves the "9to5."

Today on the show, we revisit our 2021 episode where we meet the women behind the movement that inspired the movie. And a look at how far we have — or haven't — come since then.

This is a special Sunday bonus episode. For our latest episode on inventing new tomatoes, scroll down the feed or click here. 

(Note: This episode originally ran in 2021.)

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Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.

Today's episode was hosted by Sarah Gonzalez and Sonari Glinton. The original episode was produced by Nick Fountain and James Sneed and edited by Mitra Kaboli. The update was produced by Sam Yellowhorse Kesler, and engineered by Jimmy Keeley. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money’s executive producer.

Music: "9 to 5," "5 to 9," and "Fly on the Wall." 

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Dolly Parton’s “9 to 5,” the true story behind the anthem (bonus)

The produce aisle is changing. You’ve noticed this, I’m sure. It is now full of superstar fruits and vegetables: The Honeycrisp apple, The Cotton Candy grape, The Cuties mandarin orange. They stand out. They cost more. They have branding and sometimes trademarks and patent-ish kinds of protections.

And now – it’s happening in the tomato bin too! Where once there were just plain old cherry or grape tomatoes, now there are Sugar Bombs, and Flavor Bombs, and Lolli Bombs and Sprinkles.

Today, we are partnering up with Dan Pashman – host of The Sporkful food podcast – and heading to New Jersey where we hope to taste an up-and-coming competitor: Rutgers University's Scarlet Sunrise grape tomato. We talk to the inventors to understand why this explosion in branded fruits and veggies has happened and how you go about making a new piece of produce.

Plus, we talk to Cornell agricultural economist Miguel Gomez about whether or not the fruits and veggies spread in our produce aisle are, perhaps, reaching the point of market saturation.

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Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.

This episode was hosted by Kenny Malone and Dan Pashman. It was produced by James Sneed and edited by Keith Romer. It was fact-checked by Sierra Juarez and engineered by Cena Loffredo & Jimmy Keeley. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money’s executive producer.

Correction, Aug. 31, 2026: An earlier version of this story incorrectly said that the University of Washington developed the Cosmic Crisp apple. It was Washington State University.

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Branded fruit: How produce got “Honeycrisp-ified"

The cyber weapon that might have prevented nuclear war.

The U.S. and Israel have long been in conflict with Iran over their nuclear development program. Some of that conflict has been out in the open, with bombs and blockades, but some of it has been invisible. 

Recently some security researchers discovered a cyberweapon likely tied to that invisible conflict. It looks like it was designed to hide on nuclear scientists computers, then throw off their calculations--just as they got close to achieving their goals.

Sounds like something out of science fiction. But it was created 20 years ago. 

On today’s show: a whodunit about hackers, ‘Cyber Paleontologists’, spy-vs-spy protocols, cryptic intelligence leaks, nuclear physics, high-precision math, and epistemological warfare.

Pictured: Juan Andres Guerrero Saade (JAGS) and his ‘Fast16 - NOTHING TO SEE HERE, CARRY ON’ tattoo. 

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This episode was hosted by Nick Fountain and Erika Beras. It was produced by Willa Rubin and edited by Marianne McCune with help from Jess Jiang. It was fact-checked by Charlotte Isidore and engineered by Kwesi Lee. Alex Goldmark is our executive producer.

Music: NPR Source Audio - “High Tech Expert,” “Digital Wave,” and “Hyper Pop.”

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Can computer hackers get inside your mind?

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