The economist and social critic Glenn Loury has led a remarkably turbulent life, both professionally and personally. In a new memoir, he has chosen to reveal just about everything. Why?  SOURCE:Glenn Loury, professor of economics at Brown University and host of The Glenn Show. RESOURCES:Late Admissions: Confessions of a Black Conservative, by Glenn Loury (2024)."Amy Wax – The DEI Witch Hunt at Penn Law," by Glenn Loury (The Glenn Show, 2024)."The Conservative Line on Race," by Glenn Loury (The Atlantic, 1997)."Will Affirmative-Action Policies Eliminate Negative Stereotypes?" by Stephen Coate and Glenn Loury (The American Economic Review, 1993). EXTRAS:"Roland Fryer Refuses to Lie to Black America," by Freakonomics Radio (2022)."How Much Does Discrimination Hurt the Economy?" by Freakonomics Radio (2021)."The Pros and Cons of Reparations," by Freakonomics Radio (2020).

588. Confessions of a Black Conservative

Freakonomics co-author Stephen J. Dubner uncovers the hidden side of everything. Why is it safer to fly in an airplane than drive a car? How do we decide whom to marry? Why is the media so full of bad news? Also: things you never knew you wanted to know about wolves, bananas, pollution, search engines, and the quirks of human behavior.

Join the Freakonomics Radio Plus membership program for weekly member-only episodes of Freakonomics Radio. You’ll also get every show in our network without ads. To sign up, visit our show page on Apple Podcasts or go to freakonomics.com/plus.

Society & Culture

Personal Journals

History

Philosophy

Places & Travel

Documentary

The Berlin dance mecca Berghain is known for its eight-hour line and inscrutable door policy. PJ Vogt, host of the podcast Search Engine, joins us to crack the code. It has to do with Cold War rivalries, German tax law, and one very talented bouncer.  SOURCES:Lutz Leichsenring, executive board member of Clubcommission Berlin and co-founder of VibeLab.PJ Vogt, reporter, writer, and host of the podcast Search Engine. RESOURCES:"Berghain: 36 Hours Inside the World's Most Exclusive Nightclub," by Linux (Paper Magazine, 2022).Berlin Bouncer, documentary by David Dietl (2019)."High Culture Club: Berghain Secures Same Tax Status as Berlin Concert Venues," by Philip Oltermann (The Guardian, 2016)."One Eye on the Door, the Other on His Photography," by Nicholas Kulish (The New York Times, 2011).Lost and Sound: Berlin, Techno and the Easyjet Set, by Tobias Rapp (2009). EXTRA:Search Engine, podcast by PJ Vogt.

EXTRA: The Fascinatingly Mundane Secrets of the World’s Most Exclusive Nightclub

Hit by Covid, runaway costs, and a zillion streams of competition, serious theater is in serious trouble. A new hit play called Stereophonic — the most Tony-nominated play in history — has something to say about that. We speak with the people who make it happen every night. (Part one of a two-part series.)  SOURCES:David Adjmi, author and playwright.Sonia Friedman, theater producer and founder of Sonia Friedman Productions.John Johnson, theater producer and co-founder of Wagner Johnson Productions.Tom Pecinka, actor.Sarah Pidgeon, actor. RESOURCES:Stereophonic, by David Adjmi, Will Butler, and Daniel Aukin (2023).Lot Six: A Memoir, by David Adjmi (2020)."On the Performing Arts: The Anatomy of Their Economic Problems," by W. J. Baumol and W. G. Bowen (The American Economic Review, 1965).

592. How to Make the Coolest Show on Broadway

Every December, a British man named Tom Whitwell publishes a list of 52 things he’s learned that year. These fascinating facts reveal the spectrum of human behavior, from fraud and hypocrisy to Whitwell’s steadfast belief in progress. Should we also believe?  SOURCES:Tom Whitwell, managing consultant at Magnetic. RESOURCES:"Supercentenarian and Remarkable Age Records Exhibit Patterns Indicative of Clerical Errors and Pension Fraud," by Saul Justin Newman (Working Paper, 2024)."52 things I learned in 2023," by Tom Whitwell (Magnetic Notes, 2023)."Job Satisfaction 2023," by The Conference Board (2023)."What Fax Machines and Floppy Disks Reveal About Britain’s Productivity Problem," (The Economist, 2017).Fighting Traffic: The Dawn of the Motor Age in the American City, by Peter D. Norton (2008)."Beyond Propaganda," by John Kenney (The New York Times, 2006).

591. Signs of Progress, One Year at a Time

An update of our 2020 series, in which we spoke with physicians, researchers, and addicts about the root causes of the crisis — and the tension between abstinence and harm reduction.  SOURCES:Gail D’Onofrio, professor and chair of emergency medicine at the Yale School of Medicine and chief of emergency services at Yale-New Haven Health.Keith Humphreys, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University.Stephen Loyd, chief medical officer of Cedar Recovery and chair of the Tennessee Opioid Abatement Council.Nicole O’Donnell, certified recovery specialist at the University of Pennsylvania's Center for Addiction Medicine and Policy.Jeanmarie Perrone, professor of emergency medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.Eileen Richardson, restaurant manager. RESOURCES:“Toward Healthy Drug Policy in the United States — The Case of Safehouse,” by Evan D. Anderson, Leo Beletsky, Scott Burris, and Corey S. Davis (The New England Journal of Medicine, 2020).“Buprenorphine Deregulation and Mainstreaming Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder,” by Leo Beletsky, Kevin Fiscella, and Sarah E. Wakeman (JAMA Psychiatry, 2018).“Emergency Department–Initiated Buprenorphine/Naloxone Treatment for Opioid Dependence,” by Gail D’Onofrio, Patrick G. O’Connor, Michael V. Pantalon, Marek C. Chawarski, Susan H. Busch, Patricia H. Owens, Steven L. Bernstein, and David A. Fiellin (JAMA, 2015).“Buprenorphine-Naloxone Therapy In Pain Management,” by Lucy Chen, Kelly Yan Chen, and Jianren Mao (National Institutes of Health, 2014).“Prevalence and Correlates of Street-Obtained Buprenorphine Use Among Current and Former Injectors In Baltimore, Maryland,” by Jacquie Astemborski, Becky L. Genberg, Mirinda Gillespie, Chris-Ellyn Johanson, Gregory D. Kirk, Shruti H. Mehta, Charles R. Schuster, and David Vlahov (U.S. National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health, 2014).“The Promotion and Marketing of OxyContin: Commercial Triumph, Public Health Tragedy,” by Art Van Zee (U.S. National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health, 2009). EXTRAS:"Why Is the Opioid Epidemic Still Raging?" series by Freakonomics Radio (2024)."The Opioid Tragedy, Part 1: 'We’ve Addicted an Entire Generation,'" by Freakonomics Radio (2020).“The Truth About the Vaping Crisis,” by Freakonomics Radio (2019).

EXTRA: The Opioid Tragedy — How We Got Here

Thanks to legal settlements with drug makers and distributors, states have plenty of money to boost prevention and treatment. Will it work? (Part two of a two-part series.)  SOURCES:Keith Humphreys, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University.Stephen Loyd, chief medical officer of Cedar Recovery and chair of the Tennessee Opioid Abatement Council.Christine Minhee, founder of OpioidSettlementTracker.com. RESOURCES:"Court Conflicted Over Purdue Pharma Bankruptcy Plan That Shields Sacklers From Liability," by Amy Howe (SCOTUSblog, 2023).NationalOpioidSettlement.com.OpioidSettlementTracker.com.The Helios Alliance. EXTRAS:"The Opioid Tragedy, Part 2: 'It’s Not a Death Sentence,'" by Freakonomics Radio (2020).

588. Confessions of a Black Conservative

Download our free app to listen on your phone