Capitalisn't

University of Chicago Podcast Network

We investigate how capitalism is—or more often isn’t—working in our world today.

Hosted by economist Luigi Zingales and business journalist Bethany McLean, our podcast explains why capitalism can go wrong and what we can do to fix it.

Send us your questions or comments by emailing capitalisntpod@gmail.com

Cover photo attributions: https://www.chicagobooth.edu/research/stigler/about/capitalisnt.

Listen in podnod RSS feed Show website

247 episodes
Updated Thursday

Episodes247

Newest first

Jun 9, 2022 · 52 min
A Defense of the Neoliberal Order with Glenn Hubbard + Big Tech Antitrust Bills
Glenn Hubbard is Professor and Dean Emeritus at Columbia Business School, and also served as Chair of the U.S. Council of Economic Advisers, among others. In his new book, "The Wall and the Bridge: Fear and Opportunity in Disruption's Wake", he addresses the underlying forces behind the global populist anxiety by reimagining the process of "building bridges, not walls". He talks with Bethany and Luigi about trade, reforming social insurance, preparing the labor force for technological change, an
May 26, 2022 · 57 min
Liberalism And Its Discontents With Francis Fukuyama + The Baby Formula Shortage
Francis Fukuyama is an American political scientist and author, notably of The End of History (1992) and Trust: Social Virtues and Creation of Prosperity (1995). Now, in his new book, he offers liberalism as a solution to our current problems of social bifurcation, if paired with other functional institutions of a democracy. Bethany and Luigi sit down with Fukuyama to understand: What does liberalism even mean? What are its excesses and its critiques from the progressive left? How dependent is
May 12, 2022 · 56 min
The Intangible Economy with Jonathan Haskel + Roe v Wade & Corporate America
What do lighthouses, the wheelie suitcase, Harry Potter, and Wikipedia have in common? They showcase the progressive evolution towards investment in the "intangible economy": one prioritizing knowledge, relationships, design, reputation, and other internal organization over physical assets. Jonathan Haskel is Professor of Economics at Imperial College (London) and the co-author of a new book "Restarting the Future: How to Fix the Intangible Economy". Bethany and Luigi sit down with Haskel to di
Apr 28, 2022 · 1 hr 7 min
Is Common Good Capitalism The Answer? With Oren Cass + Elon Musk Buys Twitter
The basic premise of capitalism has always been that more people generating more profits will be better for everybody. Oren Cass wants to challenge that premise by prioritizing values over value and over market power. Oren was formerly an Economic Advisor to the Mitt Romney Presidential Campaign, now executive director of the nonprofit American Compass and author of The Once and Future Worker: A Vision for the Renewal of Work in America (2018). A successful economy, according to him, should not
Apr 14, 2022 · 42 min
Ukraine: The Price of Democracy with Tymofiy Mylovanov
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, we've discussed its many aspects but we haven't talked to anyone actually in or from the country. On this episode, we do both. Ukrainian economist Tymofiy Mylovanov is the president of the Kyiv School of Economics, advisor to the Zelensky administration, and former Ukrainian Minister of Economic Development, Trade and Agriculture. Mylovanov shares what has and hasn't surprised him about the war, reveals Russia’s other strategic advantages beyond energy re
Mar 31, 2022 · 41 min
Ukraine: Sanctioning the Oligarchs' Enablers With Bill Browder
As the devastation in Ukraine increases, so do the calls to end the war. Among those championing tougher actions is Bill Browder—one of Putin’s most vocal critics—and the man behind the Magnitsky Act, which authorizes the U.S. government to sanction human rights offenders. Browder has been advocating for expanding the list of sanctioned pro-Kremlin Russian oligarchs. He prescribes that Western lawyers, bankers, and other enablers of these oligarchs should also be held responsible. Browder's n
Mar 17, 2022 · 38 min
Ukraine: The Privatization of Sanctions with Richard Edelman
As the war in Ukraine continues, the world is responding not just with various government sanctions on Russia, but also with a voluntary exodus of private corporations from the Russian market. To discuss these "private sanctions" and possible motivations behind them, we invited Richard Edelman, the CEO of one of the largest public relations firms in the world. Are firms profit-maximizing in their actions? Are they responding to political or consumer pressure? Or are they simply trying to avoid
Mar 3, 2022 · 29 min
Ukraine: A Restart Of History
After the fall of the Berlin Wall, political scientist Francis Fukuyama famously proclaimed the "end of history" and of humankind’s ideological evolution. The combination of Western liberal democracy and capitalism were seen as the final, convergent form of global human organization — surpassing geopolitical considerations. As Russia invades Ukraine, history seems to have restarted. This time the tension is not between capitalism and socialism, but between liberal capitalism and autocratic capi
Feb 17, 2022 · 59 min
The Private Equity Debate: Is it a Good Investment?
Is private equity a good investment? Jeffrey Hooke, Senior Lecturer at Johns Hopkins' Carey School of Business, claims that private equity has not been a lucrative investment for institutional investors such as pension funds or university endowments. Chicago Booth Professor Steven Kaplan, who has studied private equity for over 35 years, disagrees. Luigi and Bethany bring both Jeff and Steven on the show to debate this, and the evolution (or lack thereof) in reporting, transparency, and corpora
Feb 3, 2022 · 54 min
The Causes And Effects Of Today's Inflation, With Raghuram Rajan
The Federal Reserve is likely to hike interest rates in March due to high inflation and the strong labor market. But where did this inflation come from? Is it transitory or is it here to stay? Whom does it hurt the most and what should be done about it? To discuss this, we invited Chicago Booth professor and former IMF chief economist Raghuram Rajan, who – when he served as India’s central banker – was charged with fighting inflation himself.
Jan 20, 2022 · 54 min
Meritocracy: The Genetic Lottery with Kathryn Paige Harden
Last year, Capitalisn’t featured two episodes on the pluses and minuses of meritocracy. Supporters of meritocracy, such as Adrian Wooldrige, emphasize its ethical dimension. Critics, such as Michael Sandel, emphasize the luck component. At the end of the day, it is an empirical question, albeit a difficult one: How much of “success” is driven by effort versus luck? Luigi and Bethany sit down with Kathryn Paige Harden, behavioral geneticist, professor of psychology, and author of the book "The
Jan 6, 2022 · 51 min
Capitalism As A Contradiction With Yanis Varoufakis
Yanis Varoufakis is a vocal critic of capitalism. He is a Greek academic, writer, and politician – as former Minister of Finance, led negotiations during the government debt crisis of 2015. But even as the founder of the left-wing political party MeRA25 (European Realistic Disobedience Front) in 2018, he laments the bankruptcy of today’s left. He describes capitalism as a contradiction with immense advantages (innovation, wealth, gadgets, technologies) but also with an inherent tendency to ca
Dec 16, 2021 · 41 min
The Political Polarization of Corporate America
Increased polarization in America has meant more political homogeneity across our digital, social, and civic spaces. But what about our workplaces, where so many Americans spend a bulk of their time? Associate Professor of Finance at Chicago Booth, Elisabeth Kempf, has new data and research out looking at political alignment within corporate executive teams, and whether or how much it has increased over time. We sit down with Elisabeth to understand the factors which could be influencing this t
Dec 2, 2021 · 49 min
Is “Woke” Capitalism A Threat To Democracy?
Vivek Ramaswamy, a scientist, lawyer, and former venture capitalist and entrepreneur, has a new book out: "Woke, Inc.: Inside Corporate America's Social Justice Scam". In this book, he argues that "wokeism" has become a way for corporations to wrap themselves in a mantle, which then furthers the idea of crony capitalism and extends their power into spaces they were never meant to be in. Luigi Zingales and Bethany McLean sit down with Ramaswamy to discuss his perspectives on the role of virtue,
Nov 18, 2021 · 50 min
How Antitrust Failed Workers With Eric Posner
The monopoly power of massive tech platforms has thrust antitrust law back into the spotlight in recent years. But while everyone was focused on monopoly power, a handful of academics have actually been looking into monopsony power. Specifically, how employers in highly concentrated labor markets use anticompetitive methods to suppress wages. University of Chicago Law Professor Eric Posner has a new book out that tackles this issue called “How Antitrust Failed Workers”. He makes the case for wh
Nov 4, 2021 · 43 min
A Turning Point In The History Of Capitalism?
Histories are often relegated to the sidelines of economic study. But what do we lose in our theories when we only focus on the math and models? In his new book, “Ages of American Capitalism”, University of Chicago historian Jonathan Levy looks at the turning points in the history of capitalism and what those moments can teach us about today.
Oct 21, 2021 · 56 min
Is Evergrande Really China’s Lehman Moment?
In September China's second largest real-estate developer, Evergrande, missed an $83.5 million debt payment. Skeptics and bears on China have long said that its property market, which makes up some 30 percent of GDP, is over-leveraged and overheated. The recent news has people asking...are the bears right, and could this be China's Lehman Moment. On this episode we look at two sides of that argument, first with one of the world's most renowned bears on China, Jim Chanos who is the found of Kyni
Oct 7, 2021 · 51 min
Is Discrimination Still Causing The Gender Pay Gap With Claudia Goldin
If Claudia Goldin, Professor of Economics at Harvard University, wins the Nobel Prize in Economics next week, no-one will be surprised. Her work studying the intersection of gender and labor has been vital, both to the world and the field. But there's a curious argument in her newest book "Career and Family: Women’s Century-Long Journey Toward Equity". Goldin says that though the gender pay gap persists, it's not clear that gender discrimination is the cause. She thinks that job design may be
Sep 23, 2021 · 25 min
Why Capitalism Isn't Without Democracy
We’re taking a week off as school starts back up, but we wanted to reshare this episode with you this week. For a show about economics, we talk about democracy a lot. But there’s an important reason for that. Without a strong democracy to build capitalism on top of, it’ll always be an isn’t. So please enjoy our conversation about the important intersections of capitalism and democracy. We’ll be back in two weeks with an all new Capitalisn't.
Sep 9, 2021 · 51 min
The Smoke and Mirrors of ESG Investing with Tariq Fancy
Environmental, social and governance investing, also know as ESG, has exploded in recent years. It promises to help us solve problems like climate change and inequality all while allowing investors to still turn a profit. But BlackRock’s former global chief investment office for sustainable investing, Tariq Fancy, says it isn't what's being advertised. Recently, he penned a blog post claiming that not only are ESGs not making societal problems better, they may actively be making them worse.

Capitalisn't

A Defense of the Neoliberal Order with Glenn Hubbard + Big Tech Antitrust Bills

Liberalism And Its Discontents With Francis Fukuyama + The Baby Formula Shortage

The Intangible Economy with Jonathan Haskel + Roe v Wade & Corporate America

Is Common Good Capitalism The Answer? With Oren Cass + Elon Musk Buys Twitter

Ukraine: The Price of Democracy with Tymofiy Mylovanov

Ukraine: Sanctioning the Oligarchs' Enablers With Bill Browder

Ukraine: The Privatization of Sanctions with Richard Edelman

Ukraine: A Restart Of History

The Private Equity Debate: Is it a Good Investment?

The Causes And Effects Of Today's Inflation, With Raghuram Rajan

Meritocracy: The Genetic Lottery with Kathryn Paige Harden

Capitalism As A Contradiction With Yanis Varoufakis

The Political Polarization of Corporate America

Is “Woke” Capitalism A Threat To Democracy?

How Antitrust Failed Workers With Eric Posner

A Turning Point In The History Of Capitalism?

Is Evergrande Really China’s Lehman Moment?

Is Discrimination Still Causing The Gender Pay Gap With Claudia Goldin

Why Capitalism Isn't Without Democracy

The Smoke and Mirrors of ESG Investing with Tariq Fancy