You’ve heard about bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, but how are they different from a digital dollar? On this Whaddya Wanna Know Wednesday, we’ll discuss the benefits and drawbacks of a digital dollar as the Federal Reserve ponders making its own digital currency. Plus, we’ll explain the economics behind robocalls and vaccine mandates. And we get an email from a listener and her cats who want to know what’s up with pet food shortages.
Here’s everything we talked about today:

“What exactly is a digital dollar, and how would it work?” from Popular Science
“China’s digital yuan is a warning to the world” from Wired
“Tired of robocalls? The FCC is stillllll trying to stop them” from “Marketplace Tech”
“THE ANNOYANCE ENGINE: Spam robocalls became profitable scams by exploiting the phone system, but you can stop them” from Business Insider
“Fact check: Workers fired for refusing a vaccine are unlikely to qualify for unemployment” from USA Today
“Half of unvaccinated workers say they’d rather quit than get a shot – but real-world data suggest few are following through” from The Conversation
The Pet Food Institute on the pet food supply challenges 

Read the transcript here.
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What’s a digital dollar?

Each weekday, Marketplace’s Kai Ryssdal and Kimberly Adams make today make sense. Along with our supersmart listeners, we break down happenings in tech, the economy and culture. Every Tuesday we bring on a guest to dive deeper into one important topic. Because none of us is as smart as all of us.

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News

The Biden administration is aiming to triple tariffs on Chinese steel to protect U.S. manufacturers. Sound familiar? We’ll explain who is actually paying the price and what raising tariffs would mean for U.S. workers. We’ll also get into why economic data doesn’t always translate into how voters view the economy, especially in an election year. And, what the buzz over the popular animated series “Bluey” is all about.
Here’s everything we talked about today:

“President Biden Gives Remarks on Labor Unions and Manufacturing Jobs in Pittsburgh” from C-SPAN
“Biden vows to shield US steel industry by blocking Japanese merger and seeking new Chinese tariffs” from The Associated Press
“Once again: Who pays for tariffs on Chinese steel?” from Marketplace
“Fed Chair Powell delivers remarks at the Washington Forum on the Canadian economy” from CNBC
“Fed Chair Jerome Powell Dials Back Expectations on Interest-Rate Cuts” from The Wall Street Journal
“It’s getting harder to predict the economy’s effect on presidential elections” from Marketplace
“Caitlin Clark Selected No. 1 Overall by the Indiana Fever” from ESPN
“Wait, Caitlin Clark Is Only Getting Paid $76,000?” from The Wall Street Journal
“Hall of Fame college coach Dawn Staley Reflects on the state of women’s basketball.” from NPR
“Political advertisers worry about reaching sports fans streaming their games” from Marketplace
Bluey “The Sign” Official Trailer
“The Non-Parents’ Guide to Bluey” from Vulture
“Is “Bluey” ending? “The Sign” explained — and the show’s future.” from Vox

Join us tomorrow for Economics on Tap! The YouTube livestream starts at 3:30 p.m. Pacific time, 6:30 p.m. Eastern. We’ll have news, drinks, and play a round of Half Full/Half Empty!

What you need to know about tariffs

A union election at Volkswagen is testing the power of the United Auto Workers. As voting gets underway this week, guest host Nova Safo explains what unionization could mean for three big automakers and the labor movement in the South. Plus, how a unanimous Supreme Court ruling expands the scope of workplace bias suits. And, why Billy Joel came up at a Pentagon press briefing.
Here’s everything we talked about today:

“The South has few unionized auto plants. Workers say this one could be next.” from The Washington Post
“Supreme Court makes it easier to sue for job discrimination over forced transfers” from The Associated Press
“Hugh Grant says he took ‘enormous sum’ to settle suit alleging illegal snooping by The Sun tabloid” from The Associated Press
“Conservative Broadcaster OAN Settles Defamation Claims by Voting-Machine Company Smartmatic” from The Wall Street Journal
Pentagon press conference moment from Travis Akers on X
Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire” (Official HD Video) 

We love to hear from you. Send your questions and comments to makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

A new day for labor organizing in the South?

There’s been a lot of debate lately about the potential effects of smartphones and social media on young people’s mental health. Some states like states like Florida and Utah have even tried to ban kids from using social media apps until they reach a certain age. But Mikey Jensen, professor of clinical psychology and director of the Interactions and Relationships Lab at the University of North Carolina Greensboro, said outright bans could do more harm than good.
On the show today: How smartphones and social media are reshaping our lives. And why we should focus on the quality of kids’ online time instead of the amount of it. 
 
Then, we’ll get into the cost of a major ransomware attack for a health care company and its clients. And, the mini pencil economy and what a history professor got wrong about ancient Rome.
 
Here’s everything we talked about today:
 



“The great rewiring: is social media really behind an epidemic of teenage mental illness?” from Nature



 



“The Phone in the Room” from The New York Times



 



“I Asked 65 Teens How They Feel About Being Online” from The Cut



 



“What the evidence really says about social media’s impact on teens’ mental health” from Vox



 



“UnitedHealth to take up to $1.6 billion hit this year from Change hack” from Reuters



 



“Change Healthcare stolen patient data leaked by ransomware gang” from TechCrunch



 



“IMF Steps Up Its Warning to US Over Spending and Ballooning Debt” from Bloomberg




We want to hear your answer to the Make Me Smart question. You can reach us at makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

What we often get wrong about teens and screen time


It’s Tax Day! Millions of Americans have already filed their 2023 returns, but today we’re talking about tax protesters and the moral and ethical reasons some refuse to file their taxes or pay what they owe. Plus, the “no landing” scenario has entered the chat. And, what are we getting wrong about the cosmos?
Here’s everything we talked about today:




“Taxes are due even if you object to government policies or doubt the validity of the 16th Amendment’s ratification” from The Conversation



 



“Taxes 2024: I stopped paying taxes a decade ago. The results shocked me.” from Slate



 



“‘The 401(k) industry owns Congress’: How lawmakers quietly passed a $300 billion windfall to the wealthy” from Politico



 



“Fed Hiking Rates to 6.5% Is ‘Real Risk’ for UBS Strategists” from Bloomberg



 



“March retail sales data show the American consumer is still pretty strong” from Axios



 



“World’s top cosmologists convene to question conventional view of the universe” from The Guardian







We love to hear from you. Send your questions and comments to makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

The rise of the (tax) resistance


It’s hard to get around without a car these days. But in the last couple of years, owning one has become very expensive. We’ll explain the deceptive practices happening in the auto lending market. And, we’ll explain how Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s power in the Democratic Party was demonstrated by a campaign contribution. Plus, we’ll play a round of Half Full/Half Empty and weigh in on “dumbphones” and adult gap years.
 
Here’s everything we talked about today:
 



“Ocasio-Cortez Never Steered Money to a Key Arm of Her Party. Until Now.” from The New York Times



 



“The rise of the scammy car loan” from Vox



 



“Decades later, Bonnie Tyler still finds new fans for her hit song every total eclipse” from CBC Radio



 



“Tech is supercharging pre-employment personality tests” from Marketplace



 



“The Dumbphone Boom Is Real” from The New Yorker



 



“Broadband ‘nutrition labels’ help you comparison shop for cable” from Marketplace



 



“Brands in Space: What’s behind the rush to advertise in the final frontier?” from Marketplace



 



“‘Companies are starting to realize burnout is an issue’: Meet the lucky workers taking sabbaticals and ‘adult gap years’ to recharge” from Fortune




 
We love to hear from you. Send your questions and comments to makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.


What’s a digital dollar?

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