Mar 09 Watch Growing Ridership Strains Overburdened Transit Agencies Public transit ridership is at a 50-year high, but the economic downturn is putting new pressure on already overburdened transit agencies. Special correspondent Rick Karr reports as part of the "Blueprint America" series on infrastructure, produced in collaboration with WNET… Continue watching
Mar 09 Watch Other News: Signing Statements Under Review, Economic Outlook Worsens President Barack Obama ordered a review of the Bush administration's policy on presidential signing statements, and billionaire investor Warren Buffett made a stark assessment of economic conditions. Continue watching
Mar 09 What Are the Benefits of the Stock Market? Question: How does having a stock market benefit the entire country? To the extent that IPOs represent a mechanism for gaining funds for projects that increase profits, it is very useful. But don’t stocks… Continue reading
Mar 09 Merck/Schering-Plough Merger Would Create Second-Largest Drug Company By PBS News Hour Two major pharmaceutical companies announced plans to merge Monday in a $41.1 billion cash-and-stock deal to form the world's second-largest prescription drug maker. Continue reading
Mar 09 What's the Total Wealth of the United States? Question: With all this economic turmoil and talk of trillions of dollars, my question is: What is the total wealth of the United States? If the total U.S. wealth is, say, $100,000 trillion, then spending $1 trillion to help banks… Continue reading
Mar 06 Watch Job Losses, Economic Realities Hit Home in Indiana City Amid a deepening economic crisis, the unemployment rate in Elkhart, Ind., has skyrocketed to 18 percent as the town's manufacturing base has collapsed. Paul Solman reports on the town's tough economic times. Continue watching
Mar 06 Watch Unemployment, Underemployment Reading Tops 14% The Labor Department's release of new unemployment numbers Friday had analysts comparing the job market in the current recession to the jobless rate in 1982. New York Times reporter David Leonhardt draws parallels from the past and assesses the current… Continue watching
Mar 06 Watch Unemployment Rate Climbs to 8.1% in New Sign of Deepening Recession The Labor Department reported Friday that the U.S. unemployment rate hit 8.1 percent, its highest rate in 25 years. Ray Suarez reports on the latest employment numbers, reaction from the White House and the impact on Wall Street. Continue watching
Mar 06 Does Negative News Contribute to the Downturn? Question: I would love to see you do a story on the impact of media coverage on the recession. Over the last two years, there has been a steady drumbeat of “the recession is coming, the recession is coming!” Is… Continue reading
Mar 06 Do We Need a Kinder, Gentler Bubble? Question: Is the answer to the crisis a kinder, gentler bubble? Paul Solman: I’m posing this question to myself, but let me pass the buck from the outset on this one – to the eerily astute Adam Smith — whose… Continue reading