Binyamin Appelbaum

02/10/20 • 45 min

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Ep. 32 — An economics reporter is jolted by the 2016 Presidential race and rethinks all his assumptions about the American economy and electorate / Binyamin Appelbaum, Author, The Economist’s Hour. Binyamin Appelbaum had been reporting and writing about economics for more than a decade when Donald Trump won the 2016 Presidential race. The shocking outcome led Appelbaum to realize that he must go back to the drawing board, to Macroeconomics 101, in order to understand what had just happened. What resulted is his terrific book, "The Economists' Hour: False Prophets, Free Markets, and the Fracture of Society." The Economists' Hour refers to the 40-year period from 1969 to 2008 when a cadré of economists rose from obscurity to household names, shaping government policy and shifting the government's role from actively shaping the economy to allowing the market to largely do so. Appelbaum concludes that those economists were in essence, "False Prophets.” “They sold their ideas by representing that if we embrace this approach to public policy, the economy would grow more quickly, all boats would be lifted up, prosperity would be broad and well distributed, and even that democracy would benefit,” says Appelbaum. “And I think in all three of those respects, this change in policy making failed to deliver. Growth has slowed, inequality has increased, and our democracy is in worse shape than ever.” Now a New York Times editorial board member, Appelbaum offers an eye-popping primer on the economic forces that are shaping the 2020 Presidential elections. This is a terrific conversation that offers timely context for President Trump’s proposed $4.8 trillion budget that comes with huge safety-net cuts. Appelbaum’s sweeping history of America’s macro-economic policies in The Economist’s Hour is a must-read for every voter who plans to cast his or her ballot in the 2020 Presidential race. I know I came away feeling much smarter after reading Appelbaum’s book and having had this deep discussion with him and I can better understand the economic and social consequences of how I cast my ballot this November. And I hope so will you. Tanscript Download the PDF Ragavan: Binyamin Appelbaum had been writng about economics with considerable success for more than a decade. When Donald Trump was elected President in November 2016. The shocking victory jolted Appelbaum into a humbling realization. Hello everyone. I'm Chitra Ragavan and this is When It Mattered. This episode is brought to you by Goodstory, an advisory firm helping technology start ups find their narrative. After Trump's election in 2016, Appelbaum knew he had to go back to the drawing board and reconnect the dots in his understanding and the public's understanding of the macroeconomic factors that got Trump elected President. What resulted is his terrific book, The Economists' Hour: False Prophets, Free Markets, and the Fracture of Society. Ragavan: Joining me now to share what he discovered and the factors that could swing the 2020 Presidential race is Binyamin Appelbaum. He is the lead writer on business and economics for the New York Times editorial board. Before joining the editorial board, Appelbaum was a Washington correspondent for the Times, covering economic policy in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. Appelbaum also worked for the Charlotte Observer where his reporting on the subprime lending crisis won a George Polk Award and was a finalist for the Pulitzer prize. Binyamin, welcome to the podcast. Appelbaum: Thank you for having me. Ragavan: Were you one of those geeky kids? A wiz at math and head buried in books? Where did you grow up and what were you like? Appelbaum: I grew up outside of Boston and yeah. My father is a professor. My mother is a historian. It was very much a family where books were very important. There was a shelf in my living room where my parents' books were read and shelves throughou...

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Katrina Jones

Ep. 31 — A single mother of two young sons takes lessons from her grandfather, a small-time hustler turned big-time property owner, about the value of homeownership / Katrina Jones, VP, Single Family Mortgage Business, Fannie Mae. When her husband passed away at a young age, Katrina Jones was left to raise two kids, forcing her to drop out of college to confront her new responsibilities. It would prove to be the most challenging time of her life. What kept Jones going was not just the support she got from her extended family but lessons from her grandfather, a street-smart hustler named George Carter. Born on a plantation in 1990, Carter was the son of a former slave who knew he was destined for something bigger. So he dropped out of school at age 12 and ran away from home to Washington D.C., determined to make a life for himself. Strong-willed and stubborn, Carter slept on streets and did a bunch of odd jobs and side hustles, hauling trash and fixing stoops, convincing people to take a chance on him. Unbathed and unkempt as he was, many turned him away. But others gave him a shot. Little by little, Carter put away the dough to start buying property. His first parcel of land was in Arlington, Virginia, bought for $175, mortgage payment of about $10 a month. Not knowing how to read or write, he signed for it with an X, proud to be able to give his young wife, the woman of his dreams, the home she wanted to raise her family. “There was nothing traditional about that house, five doors, more than 30 windows,” remembers Jones with a laugh, “There were always two kitchens, one upstairs for the winter and one downstairs for the summer. No central air conditioning. Windows were just open, put in a screen with some netting. It was just what we called, that's a scrappy house to go with the scrappy gentleman, who managed to fulfill his wife's dream of creating a home in Arlington where she could raise her family.” Over the decades, quietly and confidently, Carter acquired property, lot after lot — bought or a relative pittance by today’s housing prices — working his street hustles and sweat equity. Today those lots are worth millions. For Jones, it was entirely accidental that she ended up in the housing business. But it’s only made her appreciate even more the priceless legacy her late grandfather left for his family. A recent Forbes piece says a lack of home equity in black families is one big reason for the racial wealth gap between blacks and whites, analyzing 2016 data. “African-Americans on average had home equity of less than $12,000 in September. White households in comparison had average home equity of almost $189,000 then,” wrote author Christian Weller. “Black households on average own only about six percent the housing wealth of white households.” Today, Millennials are also struggling with many challenges with homeownership, including lack of savings, debt, and lack of affordable housing. “I think the way people live is changing, where they want to live is changing, how they want to live is changing and our industry needs a bit of re-imagining to consider, how do we meet the needs of today's generation of future homeowners and tomorrow in a new, different way,” says Jones. “Hopefully we figure that out, but I think affordable housing is a big challenge for us right now. I see it play out in my own family.” Tanscript Download the PDF Chitra Ragavan: When Katrina Jones' husband passed away at a young age, she was left to raise two kids on her own, forcing her to drop out of college to confront her new responsibilities. It would prove to be the most challenging time of her life. Chitra Ragavan: Hello everyone, I'm Chitra Ragavan and this is When It Mattered. This episode is brought to you by Goodstory, an advisory firm helping technology startups find their narrative. Chitra Ragavan: When her husband died, what kept Jones going was not just the support she got from her exte...

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Megan Cunningham

Ep. 33 — A writer-turned-filmmaker takes a mentor’s blunt advice to heart and becomes a pioneer in the art of visual branded storytelling / Megan Cunningham, Founder and CEO, Magnet Media. Long before “narrative” and “storytelling” became buzzwords in the technology space, Megan Cunningham was pioneering the art of brand positioning. At a time when YouTube, broadband and mobile phones were in their infancy and influencer marketing was virtually non-existent, Cunningham's brand studio, Magnet Media was putting her on track to becoming a media magnate in content marketing and branded storytelling. But it wasn’t easy creating an entirely new media and marketing model and building a global business. Cunningham learned the physical toll of burning the candle on both ends on a business trip packed with back-to-back meetings. “The first meeting, I honestly cannot tell you anything that was said during that meeting, because I was just sitting there, staring off into space, and in such agonizing pain,” Cunningham recalls. “By the end of the meeting, I just had to excuse myself. I went to the hotel room, and just called 911, because I was doubled over in pain.” Her health crisis and her husband's intervention convinced Cunningham, who had a young son, to acknowledge that scaling a company meant operating at a whole different level, both personally and professionally. Today, all the techniques that Cunningham began pioneering two decades ago –– branded visual storytelling and content, social media, and influencer marketing –– have become par for the course in the marketing industry. Cunningham still remembers the day she got that fateful call from a Google executive asking what she could do with the nascent YouTube channel and when she went to the channel, all she saw were cat videos. Don’t miss this great episode of how Cunningham has redefined the art and craft of brand storytelling. Tanscript Download the PDF Chitra: Long before narrative and storytelling became buzzwords in the technology space, Megan Cunningham was pioneering the art of brand storytelling through her content studio, Magnet Media. But, it wasn't easy creating an entirely new media and marketing model, and building a global business. Cunningham learned the cost of burning the candle on both ends, on a business trip one day. Hello everyone, I'm Chitra Ragavan, and this is When It Mattered. Chitra: This episode is brought to you by Goodstory, an advisory firm helping technology startups find their narrative. Chitra: Her health crisis convinced Megan Cunningham to acknowledge that scaling a company meant operating a whole different level, both personally and professionally. Here to talk about it is Megan Cunningham, CEO of the brand studio Magnet Media. Cunningham is a sought after speaker on media and marketing trends, especially how data informs the storytelling process to drive measurable impact. She's also the author of the book, The Art of the Documentary, and Cunningham has spoken at many events, including the Sundance Film Festival, the Wharton School of Business, South by Southwest, and the Consumer Electronics Show. Chitra: Megan, welcome to the podcast. Megan: Thank you so much for having me. Chitra: What did you want to be when you grew up? Did you want to be doing what you're doing now? Megan: When I was younger, I was really fortunate to be immersed in a house that just loved to tell stories. We have a really close family, and everyone's a pretty obsessive reader, but we also love to exchange stories. That was a big part of my life growing up. Megan: So, when it came to decide what I wanted to be, of course I naturally gravitated towards writing. However, after researching all the schools I could potentially go to, and looking into the writing programs, and visiting campuses, I chose Swarthmore. Yet, when I signed up for my first year of courses, the very first class I took was called,