Michael Munger of Duke University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about whether real capitalism is unstable and leads inevitably to crony capitalism. They also discuss ways to prevent the descent into cronyism and speculate on their own blind spots.

By Russ Roberts

I want to make a few remarks about the recent EconTalk Survey of your favorite episodes of last year. A little over 2400 people listening in 65 countries filled out the Survey, which I'm very grateful for. You gave me some wonderful feedback and some great ideas. Many of you remain unaware of the Archives of EconTal...

Catherine Semcer of the Property and Environment Research Center (PERC) talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the role of incentives in preserving wildlife in Africa. The conversation discusses how allowing limited hunting of big game such as elephants and using revenue from hunting licenses to reward local commu...

By Amy Willis

 In this week's episode, EconTalk host Russ Roberts tells a story of watching a cardinal in his backyard bird feeder. The bird seems nervous, giving off an air of unease. But how can Roberts be sure that's what the bird is feeling? As it flits back and forth between trees, is that "just instinct" in action, or does ...

Historian Jessica Riskin of Stanford University talks about her book The Restless Clock with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. What is the difference between human beings and machines? How has science thought about this distinction? When do we have agency and when are we constrained? Riskin discusses these issues and the imp...

By Amy Willis

When is it acceptable for medical professionals to be dishonest? This week's guest, psychotherapist Gary Greenberg, argues that all medicine "works somehow or other by deception." The 'placebo effect' may be a case in point. In this week's episode, EconTalk host Russ Roberts sits down with Greenberg to discuss its infl...

Author and psychotherapist Gary Greenberg talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the placebo effect. Is it real? How does the placebo effect influence drug testing? If it's real, what is the underlying mechanism of why it works and how might it be harnessed to improve health care? The conversation concludes with a...

Patrick Collison, co-founder and CEO of Stripe, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the pace of innovation. Collison argues that despite enormous increases in the numbers of scientists and researchers, the pace of progress in scientific and technological understanding does not seem to be increasing accordingly....

By Amy Willis

Can economics be utilized to improve the criminal justice system? Or are economists too enamored of unintended consequences to be effective in this realm? Is technology transforming criminal justice for the better or worse? In this week's episode, EconTalk host Russ Roberts welcomed economist Jennifer Doleac to talk ab...

Economist Jennifer Doleac of Texas A&M University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about her research on crime, police, and the unexpected consequences of the criminal justice system. Topics discussed include legislation banning asking job applicants if they've been in prison, body cameras for police, the use ...

By Amy Willis

EconTalk host Russ Roberts continues to share his Solzhenitsyn journey with us in this week's episode, welcoming Princeton University historian Stephen Kotkin to talk about his recent essay in the Times Literary Supplement. Kotkin, known as a biographer of Stalin, examines the influence of individuals in history ver...

Historian and author Stephen Kotkin of Princeton University and Stanford University's Hoover Institution talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the historical significance of the life and work of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Solzhenitsyn's birth.

By Amy Willis

Where does your health insurance come from? If you're an American, odds are you get it through your employer. But that's a relatively unique circumstance compared to the rest of the world. Why are Americans so much more likely to be insured through their employers? And is this a good way to insure people's health? In t...

Economist Ed Dolan of the Niskanen Center talks about employer-based health insurance with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Dolan discusses how unusual it is relative to other countries that so many Americans get their health insurance through their employer and the implications of that phenomenon for the structure of the h...

By Amy Willis

Is tribalism an unalloyed "bad?" Do we need to be a part of a tribe? The standard of living nearly all of us enjoy today far surpasses that of royalty from only a few generations ago. How should we understand the pitfalls of modernity and wealth, and what should we do about them? This week's episode was a powerful w...

Journalist and author Sebastian Junger talks about his book Tribe with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Junger explores the human need to be needed and the challenges facing many individuals in modern society who struggle to connect with others. His studies of communal connection include soldiers in a small combat unit and ...