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PODCAST

The Pie: An Economics Podcast

Becker Friedman Institute at UChicago

Economists are always talking about The Pie – how it grows and shrinks, how it’s sliced, and who gets the biggest shares. Join host Tess Vigeland as she talks with leading economists from the University of Chicago about their cutting-edge research and key events of the day. Hear how the economic pie is at the heart of issues like the aftermath of a global pandemic, jobs, energy policy, and more.

science social sciences

All Episodes

26:31

Green Bubble Stigma: Texting, Status, and Market Power

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2025/06/24

A text bubble might seem trivial, until it shapes market dynamics, personal identity, and federal lawsuits. In this episode, UChicago economist Leo Bursztyn discusses how Apple’s green bubble design creates a powerful lock-in effect that reinforces Apple’s market dominance.

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25:00

AI, the Economy, and Public Policy

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2025/06/11

How is AI impacting the economy today? What might this mean for tomorrow? This episode brings you inside a discussion hosted at BFI in April. Moderated by Caroline Grossman, Executive Director of the Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation, the conversation features: Anders Humlum, Assistant Professor of Economics, Chicago Booth; Sanjog Misra, Professor of Marketing, Chicago Booth & Faculty Director of the Center for Applied AI; Samir Mayekar, Associate VP and Managing Director, Polsky Center

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41:05

Tariffs, Trade, and a Misused Model

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2025/05/27

Economist Brent Neiman recently returned to UChicago from his position as Deputy Undersecretary for International Finance at The US Treasury, only to find his research being used (and misused) in the Trump administration’s sweeping new tariff policy. In this episode, Neiman walks us through what the original study actually showed, how it got misinterpreted, and why today’s tariff regime marks one of the most consequential trade shifts in decades.

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28:42

Between a Chip and a Hard Place: The Economics of...

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2025/05/13

What does Taiwan’s precarious position reveal about global power, economic leverage, and the unraveling of diplomatic norms? In this episode, economist Chang-Tai Hsieh returns to unpack Taiwan’s tangled political history, its deep economic entanglement with China, and the global stakes of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC). From fears of abandonment to the high-stakes semiconductor supply chain, Hsieh explores how Taiwan balances sovereignty, security, and survival in an increasingly

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27:08

Tariffs, Trust, and the Twilight of Norms: U.S.–China...

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2025/04/29

What happens when trust in longstanding economic norms starts to break down? In this episode, economist Chang-Tai Hsieh explores the geopolitical and economic consequences of the Trump administration’s foreign policy, particularly its approach to China. From China’s post-COVID recovery stumbles to a global flood of low-cost EVs, Hsieh unpacks the domestic roots of China’s malaise, the surprisingly muted bite of Trump-era tariffs, and why Canada, not China, may be the unexpected target of economic

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24:58

War Economies: How Ukraine and Russia Are Adapting in...

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2025/04/15

More than three years after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the war continues to reshape not only geopolitical alliances but also the economies of both countries. In this episode of The Pie, host Tess Vigeland is joined by Konstantin Sonin, John Dewey Distinguished Service Professor at the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy, for a discussion about the economic realities on the ground in Ukraine and Russia, and what might lie ahead.

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46:00

Crypto’s Fatal Flaw: Trust, Scale, and the Economics...

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2025/04/01

Crypto’s most groundbreaking innovation, permissionless consensus, may also be its greatest vulnerability. In this episode, Chicago Booth economist Eric Budish breaks down the core mechanics of blockchain trust, the staggering energy costs behind mining, and why these systems are fundamentally exposed to majority attacks. Tune in for a deep dive into the economic limits of cryptocurrencies, and what they mean for the future of decentralized finance.

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31:26

Will They or Won't They? A Former Fed Official on...

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2025/03/18

This week, the Federal Reserve's Open Market Committee meets to decide whether to adjust interest rates or keep them steady. What should we expect amid today's economic and political uncertainty? On this episode of The Pie, Randy Kroszner, former Federal Reserve Governor and Norman R. Bobins Professor of Economics at the Booth School of Business, discusses the factors influencing the Fed’s decision.

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27:50

Should Performance Reviews Be Scrapped?

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2025/03/14

Many of us react to the term “performance review” with a shudder. It’s that awkward periodic conversation in which we have to hear feedback, share our assessments of each other, and, occasionally, clash with our colleagues. But do performance reviews have to be like that? We hear from Chicago Booth's Stacey Kole. Does she think that performance reviews are worth saving, and if so, how can they be revamped?-- Today we’re bringing you a special episode from our podcast colleagues here at the

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30:53

The Future of U.S. Energy Policy Under Trump

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2025/03/04

President Donald Trump has declared a “national energy emergency,” expanding executive powers to shape U.S. energy policy in his second term. What could this mean for the future of American energy? In this episode of The Pie, Ryan Kellogg, the Ralph and Mary Otis Isham Professor and Deputy Dean for Academic Programs at the Harris School of Public Policy, discusses the implications of these federal policy changes. From tariffs on Canadian oil and fuel efficiency standards to tax credits for renewable

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42:55

The Economics of Health Insurance: Denials,...

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2025/02/18

The debate over health insurance denials intensified last year after the assassination of UnitedHealthcare’s CEO. In this episode of The Pie, host Tess Vigeland unpacks the economic forces shaping the US healthcare system with economists from the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy. Josh Gottlieb examines the financial burden of insurance denials, Zarek Brot-Goldberg explores how pre-authorizations influence prescription drug choices, and Maggie Shi reveals how hospitals adjust to

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26:08

Powering Innovation: How Government Subsidies...

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2025/02/04

The automotive industry is at the forefront of a global shift toward sustainability, with nations setting ambitious electric vehicle (EV) adoption targets. But how do government subsidies and industrial policies shape the pace of EV innovation? Hyuk-soo Kwon, Assistant Professor at the Harris School of Public Policy, explores the impact of these policies on EV patenting, revealing how firms with established EV expertise drive rapid advancements through path-dependent innovation.

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30:07

Five Years Later: How COVID-19 Reshaped Our Economy...

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2025/01/21

It’s been five years since the COVID-19 pandemic transformed the world. In this episode of The Pie, Matt Notowidigdo, Professor at the Chicago Booth School of Business, explores the pandemic’s lasting effects on education, work, and daily life. Join us as we dive into the key economic shifts brought on by COVID-19 and discuss how society can better prepare for future pandemics.

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36:15

Unlocking Higher Education: Undergraduate...

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2025/01/07

Why do so many students leave college before completing their degree, and how can we help them return? Lesley Turner, Associate Professor at the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy, discusses results from a mentoring experiment aimed at boosting undergraduate re-enrollment. Then, she examines the ripple effects of federal policies on graduate student lending, exploring their impact on access, degree attainment, and tuition prices.

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27:28

What Economics Taught Us in 2024

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2024/12/24

Americans attend church less often than they claim. Recessions can improve our health. Pesticides pose hidden dangers. And perceptions of monetary policy shape our reality. In this special year-end episode of The Pie, we dive into some of the most compelling insights and conversations from the past 12 months.

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48:40

Choosing with Uncertainty

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2024/12/19

How can policymakers make choices when confronted with uncertainty? What happens when the public loses confidence in scientific authority? Are scientists, including economists, overconfident? Nobel Laureate and UChicago economist Lars Hansen, a leading authority on uncertainty in economic decision-making, tackles these and related questions in this Extra Slice of The Pie, hosted by BFI Executive Director, Ben Krause. The answers will surprise you.

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37:55

Balancing Purse and Peace: Tax Collection, Public...

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2024/12/10

Many low-income countries face a dilemma: keep taxes low and remain unable to build state capacity, or raise taxes and risk political unrest. In this episode of The Pie, Ben Krause, Executive Director of the Becker Friedman Institute for Economics, shares insights from an experiment in Haiti demonstrating how the provision of public goods can boost tax compliance.

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23:44

Pricing Pollution: Measuring Carbon Externalities for...

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2024/11/26

A company’s value includes not just the goods and services it provides but also the societal costs it imposes. In this episode of The Pie, Lubos Pastor, Charles P. McQuaid Distinguished Service Professor of Finance at Chicago Booth, explores how to integrate the costs of corporate greenhouse gas emissions into traditional measures of corporate performance.

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26:15

Deadly Prescriptions: What Happens When Doctors...

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2024/11/12

When some US states allowed nurse practitioners to prescribe controlled substances without physician oversight, a serious unintended consequence took hold: Doctors found themselves competing with those nurses for patients. Molly Schnell, BFI Saieh Family Fellow and assistant professor at Northwestern University, along with her colleagues—Janet Currie of Princeton and Anran Li of Cornell—examine the resultant uptick in prescriptions in controlled substances, and the impact on patients.

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94:02

An Extra Slice of the Pie, with James Robinson:...

The Pie: An Economics Podcast ·

2024/11/05

James Robinson, a University Professor with appointments in both UChicago’s Harris School of Public Policy as well as the Political Science Department in the Division of Social Sciences, is the university’s latest faculty member to win the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. On this episode of “An Extra Slice of The Pie,” Robinson joins Ben Krause, BFI Executive Director and new, semi-regular guest host, to discuss his research and the path to a Nobel. Tune in to learn more about Robinson’s

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117 results

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