Marketplace All-in-One - The view from cattle country
On today’s edition of “Economics on Tap,” Kimberly is joined by Anna Pope, agriculture and rural affairs reporter for KOSU and Harvest Public Media, to talk about how Oklahoma’s agricultural workers are faring amid wildfires, federal workforce reductions and shifting global trade tensions. One bright spot: beef prices! And, we’ll play a round of Half Full/Half Empty.
Here’s everything we talked about today:
- "Oklahoma fire crews battling several wildfires" from KOSU
- "Oklahoma-based federal ag workforce lost nearly 1 in 5 of its employees last year" KOSU
- "Hunger rose slightly in the U.S., a new report shows. The USDA says it will stop tracking the data" from Harvest Public Media
- "Oklahoma had a bumper wheat crop, but it's not alone. Here's what that means for producers" from KOSU
- "Beef prices keep rising. What will it take to bring them down?" from Marketplace
- "Gen Z Doesn’t Go to the Club. They Party at Coffee Shops Instead." from Texas Monthly
- "Job hunters turn to "reverse" recruiters to get an edge" from Marketplace
- "Americans drank more milk in 2024, reversing a decade-long decline" from Harvest Public Media
We love hearing from you. Leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART or email makemesmart@marketplace.org.
In the Loop with Sasha-Ann Simons - WBEZ’s Weekly News Recap: Feb. 20, 2026
Marketplace All-in-One - Supreme Court strikes down Trump’s tariffs
The Supreme Court just ruled that the cornerstone of the president’s tariff policy is illegal. It says Donald Trump can’t impose tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. U.S. consumers and businesses have been shouldering nearly 90% of the cost of all import taxes, and some businesses are vowing to go to court to get a refund. Also on the show: weaker-than-expected GDP growth, DEI's rebrand, and potential federal regulation for driverless cars.
Marketplace All-in-One - Understanding the “cruel math of unemployment”
Mainstream economics acknowledges that some joblessness helps to keep prices down. It’s one of the reasons most economists say unemployment at zero isn't actually ideal. This morning, we're joined by the University of Tulsa's Clara Mattei, who argues in a new book that "unemployment is not a problem for our system, but it's actually a solution for it." But first, both Democrats and Republicans grapple with the issue of affordability.
Marketplace All-in-One - Japan’s prime minister promises to pump up the economy
From the BBC World Service: In her first major speech since being reelected as Japan's prime minister, Sanae Takaichi promised to make Japan "stronger and more prosperous." Promises included some changes to the country’s fiscal policy approach, which would include big government spending, strategic industrial investment, and subsidies. Meanwhile, lurking in the background is Japan's heavy debt and sluggish growth. Also, gold prices are on the rise, and traditional French brasseries and bistros are facing an existential crisis.
Marketplace All-in-One - Bytes: Week in Review — Google to make links more prominent, Palantir moves to Florida and Ring reportedly had plans to use “Search Party” for more than finding lost dogs
This week, Palantir announced on X it’s relocating its headquarters to Miami. Plus, we look at the controversy around Ring's Search Party feature.
But first, an update to Google's AI search summaries. If you use AI-enabled search on Google, it’ll spit out an AI-generated summary with source links to the right. Now, the company is making links more prominent when users hover over certain words in the AI summary.
Google says this new interface is “more engaging.” Marketplace’s Stephanie Hughes spoke with Anita Ramaswamy, columnist at The Information, about all this and more.
