Why You Should Care About the Federal Reserve

Civics 101

NHPR

Government, Society & Culture, History

4.2 • 2.6K Ratings

🗓️ 8 March 2022

⏱️ 24 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Look up a definition of the Federal Reserve, and you'll see things like "central bank," "monetary policy," and "regulation and stabilization of the financial system." But what does it mean to have a national bank, and how does this government agency impact your ability to have a job, earn and borrow money, and afford things like groceries, rent, and pet food? In this episode, we'll explain how the Federal Reserve came to be, how it works, and how the actions the Fed takes influence our economy. Our guest is Louise Sheiner, policy director at the Brookings Institution's Hutchins Center on Fiscal and Monetary Policy. She spoke with Civics 101 in 2017. Want to learn more about the financial crisis of 2008? Here's some of our favorite resources: PBS has a list of documentaries about the crisis. Christina loved "Inside the Meltdown" from Frontline. "The Giant Pool of Money," from This American Life explores the housing crisis. Marketplace has a series of reports on the Great Recession, including its continuing impacts on today's economy. CLICK HERE: Visit our website to see all of our episodes, donate to the podcast, sign up for our newsletter, get free educational materials, and more! To see Civics 101 in book form, check out A User's Guide to Democracy: How America Works by Hannah McCarthy and Nick Capodice, featuring illustrations by Tom Toro. Check out our other weekly NHPR podcast, Outside/In - we think you'll love it! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	I'm Anita Hill. You probably know me. Or think you do.
0:05.1	In the past 60 years, I've seen massive social gains for women and people of color.
0:11.0	I've been at the forefront.
0:14.0	Here's the thing. This progress didn't happen by chance. It was made.
0:19.2	Made by hard work. Sometimes life-threatening work.
0:23.8	And it was made by everyday people making everyday choices.
0:27.1	But there are still social inequalities that keep me up at night.
0:35.3	My new podcast, Getting Even, is about equality and what it takes to get there.
0:41.6	We're reflecting on how we looked outside the lines,
0:44.9	broke the rules, and forged our own paths to equality.
0:50.4	Listen to Getting Even on Apple Podcast. Or wherever you like to listen.
1:03.2	You know how money works, but like do you really know how money works? You know what I mean?
1:08.2	From the opening bell, investors were sounding the alarm. A massive stock sale.
1:12.6	Now that while ride on Wall Street, the worst day in more than 400 years after the
1:17.4	sold Rosary items rose. It could be the most serious recession in decades.
1:23.2	And that means life is most Americans know what is about to change.
1:26.4	You're listening to Civics 101, and today we're talking about the Federal Reserve.
1:30.1	And listeners, this is Christina Phillips. She's our senior producer.
1:34.5	Nick, have you ever listened to a speech by the chair of the Federal Reserve?
1:37.9	No, absolutely not. Never in a thousand years would I do that on a night off.
1:42.8	All right, so I did use to listen to the Federal Reserve speeches because in a former job,
1:47.1	when I was in news, I would cover the economy as part of my beat.
	...

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