Economic Update

The View from Prison

In this week’s episode: Professor Richard Wolff delivers updates on the North Carolina union election at an Amazon warehouse, the deportation of immigrants, and the U.S. construction industry, a lesson in how capitalism installs new technology like A.I. and how it could be far better done. In the second half of this week’s episode, Professor … Continued


Economic Update

Firefighting in California / New Economics Institute with Clara Mattei

In this week’s episode: Professor Richard Wolff delves into the heroic efforts of California firefighters and their extraordinary work in battling the recent wildfires in Los Angeles. We also explore the progressive transformations occurring within U.S. labor unions and shed light on the escalating housing affordability crisis across the United States. Additionally, we interview Professor … Continued


Economic Update

Persistent Homelessness: Capitalism’s Housing Failures (encore)

In this week’s episode of Economic Update, Professor Wolff discusses updates on deep political corruption: the Illinois example; the final statistics on the 2024 presidential election results, which did NOT give Trump any mandate; the Canadian government forcing 55,000 striking postal workers back to work, despite massive worker opposition. Finally, we have an interview with … Continued


Economic Update

Persistent Homelessness: Capitalism’s Housing Failures

In this week’s episode of Economic Update, Professor Wolff discusses updates on deep political corruption: the Illinois example; the final statistics on the 2024 presidential election results, which did NOT give Trump any mandate; the Canadian government forcing 55,000 striking postal workers back to work, despite massive worker opposition. Finally, we have an interview with … Continued


Economic Update

Marxism and Economics: A Global View with Shahram Azhar

In this week’s episode, Professor Wolff discusses the strengths and weaknesses of Senator Elizabeth Warren’s new bill, “The Accountable Capitalism Act,” Elon Musk’s recent comments on homeless people, Mitch McConnell’s criticisms of Trump for isolationism, and the over 9,000 Michigan nurses voting to join the Teamsters Union. Finally, Professor Wolff interviews Bucknell University Economics Professor … Continued


Economic Update

Why the 2024 Economy was Not So Great

In this week’s episode, Professor Wolff discusses the “catalog” of 2024’s economic problem areas: (1) Slow growth relative to China/BRICS; (2) the war in Ukraine; (3) the crises in Gaza and the greater Middle East; (4) Biden & Trump tariffs policy; (5) scapegoating immigrants; (6) corporations disinterest in climate change and DEI initiatives; (7) rising … Continued


Economic Update

Capitalism vs. Democracy (encore)

On this week’s show, Professor Wolff presents an analysis of how and why capitalism is an undemocratic economic system. The first half is devoted to the micro-level, namely to the organization of the enterprise (factory, office, or store). Its undemocratic character is exposed using examples and empirical evidence. The second half has a macro-level focus … Continued


Economic Update

How U.S. Capitalism Uses Nationalism (encore)

From 1945 to 1990, we were told a great struggle pitted capitalism against socialism/communism (chiefly the USSR and China). Yet still today, U.S. leaders demonize Russia and China, despite the end of communism in the USSR and a huge growth of capitalist enterprises in China. The explanation lies in U.S. capitalism’s long history of using … Continued


Economic Update

Class Struggles Worldwide

On this week’s show, Professor Wolff delves into key global developments, including President Trump’s looming tariff wars, the collapse of Emmanuel Macron’s government in France, and massive strikes by Volkswagen workers in Germany. He also examines the fall of governments in South Korea and Syria and its implications, along with the public reaction to the … Continued


Economic Update

Special Holiday Fund Drive Episode: The Persistence of Socialism

In this week’s special hour-long episode: Professor Wolff dives deep into why socialism remains a popular and successful economic system. He begins by highlighting new laws passed by the government of Spain that punish airline companies who employ ‘unjustified’ airline passenger fees. He then debunks the unsubstantiated and nonsensical myth we hear so often that … Continued