On the Media

The Radical Catalog


Listen Later

Another chapter in the history of American consumerism came to a close this week when the retail giant Sears announced it was filing for bankruptcy and closing 142 of its unprofitable stores. As experts sifted through the details about what doomed Sears, we found ourselves reading a Twitter thread about a little-known bit of shopping history. Louis Hyman is an economic historian and professor at Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations. He tweeted: "In my history of consumption class, I teach about Sears, but what most people don't know is just how radical the catalogue was in the era of Jim Crow." In this week's podcast extra, Hyman talks to Brooke about what we can learn from the way Sears upended Jim Crow power dynamics, and what lessons it offers about capitalism more broadly. His latest book is Temp: How American Work, American Business, and the American Dream Became Temporary.

 

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

On the MediaBy WNYC Studios

  • 4.6
  • 4.6
  • 4.6
  • 4.6
  • 4.6

4.6

8,848 ratings


More shows like On the Media

View all
This American Life by This American Life

This American Life

90,893 Listeners

Radiolab by WNYC Studios

Radiolab

44,044 Listeners

Fresh Air by NPR

Fresh Air

38,581 Listeners

The New Yorker Radio Hour by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker

The New Yorker Radio Hour

6,822 Listeners

The Political Scene | The New Yorker by The New Yorker

The Political Scene | The New Yorker

4,085 Listeners

On Point with Meghna Chakrabarti by WBUR

On Point with Meghna Chakrabarti

3,994 Listeners

Reveal by The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX

Reveal

8,489 Listeners

Amicus With Dahlia Lithwick | Law, justice, and the courts by Slate Podcasts

Amicus With Dahlia Lithwick | Law, justice, and the courts

3,570 Listeners

1A by NPR

1A

4,681 Listeners

The Daily by The New York Times

The Daily

113,164 Listeners

Radio Atlantic by The Atlantic

Radio Atlantic

2,371 Listeners

Today, Explained by Vox

Today, Explained

10,306 Listeners

Throughline by NPR

Throughline

16,457 Listeners

Strict Scrutiny by Crooked Media

Strict Scrutiny

5,834 Listeners

The Ezra Klein Show by New York Times Opinion

The Ezra Klein Show

16,266 Listeners

The Divided Dial by WNYC

The Divided Dial

15 Listeners