The Rhodes Center Podcast with Mark Blyth

Rhodes Center
The Rhodes Center Podcast with Mark Blyth

A podcast from the Rhodes Center for International Finance and Economics at the Watson Institute at Brown University. Hosted by political economist and director of the Rhodes Center, Mark Blyth.

  1. 11/22/2024

    Why we think what we think, when we think about inflation

    This is a new experiment we’re trying at the Rhodes Center Podcast.  From time to time, going forward, instead of focusing on one expert and their latest research, Mark will take a deeper dive into one issue (or one question) that’s been bothering him.  Future episodes will examine the politics of immigration and the persistence of inequality. But the first episode in this new series will explore a topic especially near and dear to Mark: inflation. Specifically, the stories we tell about what causes inflation, how those stories affect our efforts to curb it, and who wins and loses depending on which stories our leaders believe.  In the first half of this episode, Mark talks with economist Nicolò Fraccaroli about a book he and Mark wrote called “Inflation: A Guide for Users and Losers” (coming out in Spring 2025).  In the second half, Mark talks with economist Claudia Sahm about the history of inflation, the role central banks play in it, and what’s lost when we try to take politics and politicians out of the inflation debate.  (One thing to note: both of these conversations were recorded before the election, but the ideas explored in these conversations are just as relevant now as ever.) Guests on this episode: Nicolò Fraccaroli is an economist at the World BankClaudia Sahm is Chief Economist for New Century Advisors and former Section Chief at the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors Learn more about the Watson Institute’s other podcasts

    39 min
  2. 06/08/2024

    The expulsion of politics? What the UK’s Office of Budget Responsibility tells us about the limits of technocracy

    When it comes to governing our economy, estimates rule the day. We want to know what effect a policy might have on the government’s budget, on economic growth, on employment…in the next 1 year, 5 years, 10 years…you get the idea. If you want to make (or critique) public policy, you better have numbers to back it up.  To get those types of estimates, economists and politicians often rely on institutions like the Office for Budget Responsibility in the UK, or the Congressional Budget Office in the United States. As a result, their estimates and fiscal projections form crucial data points in our modern politics and policymaking.  We like to think that these estimates and projections (not to mention, the people who make them) come from somewhere outside of our partisan politics. That while our values might be debatable, the numbers, at least, aren’t. But, as Mark Blyth’s guest on this episode explains: that idea is a fantasy, and to the extent it obscures the values and politics that are baked into organizations like the Office of Budget Responsibility, it’s a dangerous one.  On this episode, Mark Blyth talks with Ben Clift, author of “The Office for Budget Responsibility and the Politics of Technocratic Economic Governance.” In it, he pulls back the curtain on Britain's Office for Budget Responsibility, and reveals the hidden processes and ideologies that shape the estimates and projections that come out of it. In doing so, he shows how the OBR – and other institutions like it – are much more political than they appear.  Learn more about and purchase “The Office for Budget Responsibility and the Politics of Technocratic Economic Governance” Learn more about the Watson Institute’s other podcasts

    43 min
5
out of 5
58 Ratings

About

A podcast from the Rhodes Center for International Finance and Economics at the Watson Institute at Brown University. Hosted by political economist and director of the Rhodes Center, Mark Blyth.

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