Video | Econofact

The Problems with Low Inflation (VIDEO)

By Michael Klein and Dan Sichel·December 18, 2019
Fletcher School, Tufts University, and Wellesley College

This conversation was recorded on August 1, 2019.

Inflation has gone from being a threat to the economy because it was too high in the 1970s, to being a source of concern today because it is too low. Since 2012, the U.S. Federal Reserve has been persistently unable to lift inflation to reach its 2% target. Why

Development and Climate Change: International Dimensions of a Global Problem (VIDEO)

By Michael Klein and Gilbert Metcalf·December 9, 2019
Tufts University

This conversation was recorded on August 1, 2019.

As less developed countries aim to become more prosperous, is it fair to expect them to cut emissions as aggressively as more developed countries? While expecting emissions cuts from less developed countries may seem unfair, Michael Klein, Executive Editor of EconoFact

The Costs of Tariffs (VIDEO)

By Michael Klein and Marc Melitz·November 24, 2019
Fletcher School, Tufts University and Harvard University

This conversation was recorded on August 1, 2019.

Politicians often advocate for tariffs in an effort to protect jobs in a particular industry, such as those of steel workers. But positive employment effects are frequently muted, and can be outweighed by job losses -- for instance at companies that use steel as

No Free Lunches: Budget Constraints in Public Policy (VIDEO)

By Michael Klein and Dan Sichel·November 18, 2019
Fletcher School, Tufts University, and Wellesley College

This conversation was recorded on August 1, 2019.

Government programs face budget constraints. If government spending goes up, then either taxes or government borrowing will have to increase. And, what the government borrows, it will have to repay at some later date. In this video, Michael Klein, Executive Editor

Is Big Bad? Evolving Anti-trust Concerns in the U.S. (VIDEO)

By Michael Klein and Dan Richards·November 8, 2019
Tufts University

This conversation was recorded on August 1, 2019.

A primary concern raised when one firm dominates a market is that consumers will face higher prices and fewer choices. Yet the existence of big firms at the national level does not necessarily mean that there will be less competition at the local level. Some of

Should the Government Subsidize Exporters? (VIDEO)

By Michael Klein and Marc Melitz·October 29, 2019
Fletcher School, Tufts University and Harvard University

This conversation was recorded on August 1, 2019.

Only a very small share of U.S. companies export. The Department of Commerce puts the figure at 1% when looking at all incorporated firms across all sectors. Even in manufacturing, where exports are more important and firms on average are substantially larger, only

Understanding the Low Inflation and Low Unemployment in Today’s Economy (VIDEO)

By Megan Greene and Michael Klein·October 21, 2019
Harvard Kennedy School, and The Fletcher School, Tufts University

This conversation was recorded on August 1, 2019.

The U.S. economy is in its longest expansion on record. As unemployment touches historic lows, a striking feature of this expansion is that contrary to what economic theory would predict, inflation too remains strangely low. Megan Greene (Harvard) and Michael Klein,

What Can Policy Do to Make Housing More Affordable? (VIDEO)

By Michael Klein and Jeffrey Zabel·October 16, 2019
Tufts University

This conversation was recorded on August 1, 2019.

Concerns over whether children will be able to live in their parents' hometowns or whether renters are being displaced by gentrification are prevalent in large coastal cities. Zoning restrictions, such as minimum lot sizes, tend to be set at the city and town level.

Measuring How Well the Economy is Doing (VIDEO)

By Michael Klein and Dan Sichel·September 30, 2019
Fletcher School, Tufts University and Wellesley College

This conversation was recorded on August 1, 2019.

What tools do economists have to measure how well an economy is doing? Michael Klein, Executive Editor of EconoFact and Dan Sichel (Wellesley) highlight the advantages, as well as the drawbacks of focusing on gross domestic product (GDP) - a measure of the value