Author: Marketplace

TikTok is going to be testing a new crowd-sourced fact-checking system called Footnotes. It’s seems similar to the Community Notes systems already in use on other social media, such as X and Facebook.

TikTok is also keeping its current fact-checking systems in place. The way these community systems generally work is, say someone makes a post stating "whales are the biggest fish out there." Another user could add a note saying "actually, whales are mammals, and here's a source with more information."

Marketplace’s Stephanie Hughes spoke with Vanderbilt psychology professor Lisa Fazio about why this model of "citizen fact-checking" is catching on.

Trump’s tariffs will touch the vast majority of industries, but apparel — clothes, shoes, accessories — will be particularly impacted. Around 98% of clothing sold in the U.S. is imported, primarily from China. In this episode, we look at how tariffs have complicated the apparel supply chain. In short? Even fast fashion may no longer be cheap. Plus: The services sector braces for tariff-induced stings, home sales rose in March and a community bank CEO talks handling uncertainty.

 

The Overton Window is a concept that helps explain how the range of policies considered politically acceptable shifts over time. But have you heard of the “Ryssdal Window"? We’ll explain how it relates to what’s happening in the markets right now as president Trump hints at a possible change of heart on China tariffs. Plus, the FDA suspended a milk quality testing program. With less federal oversight, can private industries regulate themselves? And, the physics behind a great cup of coffee.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

"White House Considers Slashing China Tariffs to De-Escalate Trade War" from The Wall Street Journal

"FDA milk quality testing program suspended after job cuts" from The Hill

"‘Crazy’: Forest Service cuts ignite fear, fury over wildfire risks" from Politico

"The Physics of Perfect Pour-Over Coffee" from The New York Times

"Hegseth orders makeup studio installed at Pentagon" from CBS News

Got a question for the hosts? Email makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

The stock market is open with wind at its back. The Dow is up 2.8%, the S&P 500 is up 3.3%, and the Nasdaq is 4.1%. Market participants attribute this to President Doanld Trump saying he's not going to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. What should we make of this all? Also on the show: a look at Tesla stock movements and an idea to spur spending among China's retirees.

There's no way of sugar-coating it: The numbers from Tesla’s first quarter results were quite bad. That's unsurprising considering the blowback and protests at Tesla dealerships resulting from Elon Musk’s cost-cutting work with DOGE within the Trump administration. Auto sales were down 20%, and profits were down a whopping 70%. Plus, consumer-oriented brands struggle to predict their outlooks amid consumer jitters, and new home construction faces headwinds.

From the BBC World Service: The International Monetary Fund has cut its prediction for global economic growth from 3.3% to 2.8%. In its assessment, it describes President Donald Trump's tariffs as “a major negative shock to growth." Then, China is trying to stimulate its domestic consumption. One idea? "Silver trains." Designed for older people, and offering cocktails and karaoke, these tourism initiatives encourage retirees to travel more inside China.

Can we invest our way out of the climate crisis? That’s the question we started this series with, and in this episode, we try to answer that question. 

Host Amy Scott pops the hood of her own retirement investments to look at how to reduce their carbon impact, and she shows you how you can too. We visit a battery storage farm in the Bronx to see how New York City is leveraging its shareholder power to accelerate the energy transition. Finally, we look at a phenomenon that has emerged in the wake of backlash against environmental, social and governance investing — something called “greenhushing.”

The use of algorithmic software in setting residential rents has come under scrutiny in recent years. In 2024, the Joe Biden administration sued real estate company RealPage, alleging that its algorithm, which aggregates and analyzes private data on the housing market, enables landlords to collude in pricing and stifles competition. There's no word yet on what the second Donald Trump administration's Justice Department will do with this case. But in the meantime, some cities are banning the use of these algorithms completely. Marketplace’s Meghan McCarty Carino spoke with Robbie Sequeira, who has been reporting on the issue for Stateline.

Verizon lost nearly 300,000 monthly phone subscribers in the first quarter. The telecom giant put partial blame on ongoing government layoffs. Verizon will bounce back, analysts say, but its bad news may be followed by similar corporate disclosures reflecting DOGE-driven funding cuts and an atmosphere of paring back. Later in this episode, the U.S. lags China in nuclear power expansion, economic instability hinders AI data center investment and Catholic nuns struggle to find affordable care as they age.

Hey Smarties! Today we’re sharing an episode from our friends over at “How We Survive,” Marketplace’s climate solutions podcast. This season, host Amy Scott and the team dig into the rise of environmental, social and governance-based investing, or ESG, and the right wing backlash that followed. In this episode, the story of ESG’s start revolves around some unexpected players: rabbis, nuns and other faith-based investors.