All Episodes

December 17, 2023 70 mins
Today we are doing Jen’s favorite thing: following the big dirty money. This time the focus is on the world of private equity. Those two words together sound ever so restrained and elite, even contained.  In reality though the world of private equity is rough and destructive and affects all of us from patients seeking health care to workers losing their jobs. There are more than $10 trillion in private equity assets under management. And many public pension funds as well as ordinary members of the public are invested. Not private at all.

Timing is everything. In early December, two U.S. senators launched a bipartisan investigation on the takeover of our nation’s healthcare by giant private equity firms. Today on Booked Up we  have the top experts on this topic,Joining Jen to discuss this topic are authors Gretchen Morgenson and Joshua Rosner. Their new bestseller These Are the Plunderers: How Private Equity Runs—and Wrecks—America is a must-read for anyone and everyone who wants to understand why and how the rich get richer and the rest of us are struggling to make ends meet.

You may recognize Gretchen and Josh from their first book, about the 2008 financial and related mortgage crisis. It was a great resource for me when I wrote about that dangerous period. Reckless Endangerment: How Outsized Ambition, Greed, and Corruption Led to Economic Armageddon

Gretchen is the senior financial reporter for the NBC News Investigative Unit. A former stockbroker, she won the Pulitzer Prize in 2002 for her “trenchant and incisive” reporting on Wall Street. Josh is managing director at independent research consultancy Graham Fisher and Co., advising regulators, policymakers, and institutional investors on banking and financial markets. 




Contact Booked Up:
You can email Jen & the Booked Up team at: BOOKEDUP@POLITICON.COM or by writing to: 

BOOKED UP 
P.O. BOX 147
NORTHAMPTON, MA 01061



Get More from Gretchen Morgenson
Twitter | Website | Author of THESE ARE THE PLUNDERERS

Get More from Josh Rosner
Twitter | Website | Author of THESE ARE THE PLUNDERERS

More from Jen Taub:
Twitter | Money & Gossip  Substack | Author of BIG DIRTY MONEY 
Mark as Played

Advertise With Us

Popular Podcasts

Stuff You Should Know
My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark

My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark

My Favorite Murder is a true crime comedy podcast hosted by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark. Each week, Karen and Georgia share compelling true crimes and hometown stories from friends and listeners. Since MFM launched in January of 2016, Karen and Georgia have shared their lifelong interest in true crime and have covered stories of infamous serial killers like the Night Stalker, mysterious cold cases, captivating cults, incredible survivor stories and important events from history like the Tulsa race massacre of 1921. My Favorite Murder is part of the Exactly Right podcast network that provides a platform for bold, creative voices to bring to life provocative, entertaining and relatable stories for audiences everywhere. The Exactly Right roster of podcasts covers a variety of topics including historic true crime, comedic interviews and news, science, pop culture and more. Podcasts on the network include Buried Bones with Kate Winkler Dawson and Paul Holes, That's Messed Up: An SVU Podcast, This Podcast Will Kill You, Bananas and more.

Dateline NBC

Dateline NBC

Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com

Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.