July 23, 2025 • 9 mins
The quintessential American economic myth is that the free market picks winners and losers. But the federal government has long had a role in this equation, from the current administration all the way back to the Great Depression. Today on the show, we uncover the history of the country's national investment bank, which shaped the relationship between the government and the market in ways that are still felt today.
Check out Chris Hughes Substack
Related episodes:
The day Russia adopted the free market (Apple / Spotify)
Giant vacuums and other government climate bets (Apple / Spotify)
For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.
Fact-checking by Julia Ritchey. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
NPR Privacy Policy
Check out Chris Hughes Substack
Related episodes:
The day Russia adopted the free market (Apple / Spotify)
Giant vacuums and other government climate bets (Apple / Spotify)
For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.
Fact-checking by Julia Ritchey. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
NPR Privacy Policy
Mark as Played
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Special Summer Offer: Exclusively on Apple Podcasts, try our Dateline Premium subscription completely free for one month! With Dateline Premium, you get every episode ad-free plus exclusive bonus content.