Freakonomics co-author Stephen J. Dubner uncovers the hidden side of everything. Why is it safer to fly in an airplane than drive a car? How do we decide whom to marry? Why is the media so full of bad news? Also: things you never knew you wanted to know about wolves, bananas, pollution, search engines, and the quirks of human behavior.

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Whaling was, in the words of one scholar, “early capitalism unleashed on the high seas.” How did the U.S. come to dominate the whale market? Why did whale hunting die out here — and continue to grow elsewhere? And is that whale vomit in your perfume? (Part 1 of “Everything You Never Knew About Whaling.”) SOURCES:Eric Hilt, professor of economics at Wellesley College.Nathaniel Philbrick, writer and historian.Paul Watson, environmental activist and founder of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. RESOURCES:“Calls From the Deep: Do We Need to Save the Whales All Over Again?” by Sophy Grimshaw (The Guardian, 2020).“The Very Small World of V.C.,” by Avi Asher-Schapiro (The New Republic, 2019).“How Nantucket Came to Be the Whaling Capital of the World,” by Nathaniel Philbrick (Smithsonian Magazine, 2015).“Fin-tech,” (The Economist, 2015).“The Spectacular Rise and Fall of U.S. Whaling: An Innovation Story,” by Derek Thompson (The Atlantic, 2012).Leviathan: The History of Whaling in America, by Eric Jay Dolin (2007).“Incentives in Corporations: Evidence from the American Whaling Industry,” by Eric Hilt (NBER Working Papers, 2004).In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex, by Nathaniel Philbrick (2000).“Productivity in American Whaling: The new Bedford Fleet in the Nineteenth Century,” by Lance Davis, Robert Galiman, and Teresa Hutchins (NBER Working Paper, 1987). EXTRAS:“Is Venture Capital the Secret Sauce of the American Economy?” by Freakonomics Radio (2021).“Is the Future of Farming in the Ocean?” by Freakonomics Radio (2021).


Freakonomics Radio

The First Great American Industry (Update)

It’s a haphazard way of paying workers, and yet it keeps expanding. With federal tax policy shifting in a pro-tip direction, we revisit an episode from 2019 to find out why. SOURCES:John List, economist at the University of Chicago.Michael Lynn, professor of consumer behavior and marketing at Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration.Uri Gneezy, economist at the University of California, San Diego’s Rady School of Management.Danny Meyer, founder of Union Square Hospitality Group, and founder and chairman of the board of Shake Shack. RESOURCES:"How ‘No Tax on Tips’ Will Affect Waiters, Drivers and Diners," by Julia Moskin (New York Times, 2025).“The Drivers of Social Preferences: Evidence from a Nationwide Tipping Field Experiment,” by Bharat Chandar, Uri Gneezy, John List, and Ian Muir (The National Bureau of Economic Research, 2019).“Design and Analysis of Cluster-Randomized Field Experiments in Panel Data Settings,” by Bharat Chandar, Ali Hortacsu, John List, Ian Muir, and Jeffrey Wooldridge (The National Bureau of Economic Research, 2019).“The Effects of Tipping on Consumers’ Satisfaction with Restaurants,” by Michael Lynn (The Journal of Consumer Affairs, 2018).“The Importance of Being Marginal: Gender Differences in Generosity,” Stefano DellaVigna, John List, Ulrike Malmendier, and Gautam Rao (The American Economic Review,  2013).“Restaurant Tipping and Service Quality: A Tenuous Relationship,” by Michael Lynn (The Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, 2001). EXTRAS:“The No-Tipping Point,” by Freakonomics Radio (2016).“Should Tipping Be Banned?” by Freakonomics Radio (2013).


Why Does Tipping Still Exist? (Update)

They should have died out when the lightbulb was invented. Instead they’re a $10 billion industry. What does it mean that we still want tiny fires inside our homes? SOURCES:Tim Cooper, professor emeritus of sustainable design and consumption at Nottingham Trent University.Gökçe Günel, professor of anthropology at Rice University.Steve Horenziak, president of the National Candle Association.Meik Wiking, Danish happiness researcher, C.E.O. of the Happiness Research Institute. RESOURCES:"The Great Lightbulb Conspiracy," by Markus Krajewski (IEEE Spectrum, 2024)."The Obsolescence Issue," edited by Townsend Middleton, Gökçe Günel, and Ashley Carse (Limn, 2024).More and More and More, by Jean-Baptiste Fressoz (2024)."What Yankee Candle reviews can tell us about COVID," by Manuela López Restrepo, Christopher Intagliata, Ailsa Chang, and Sacha Pfeiffer (NPR, 2022).Spaceship in the Desert, by Gökçe Günel (2019)."The Birth of Planned Obsolescence," by Livia Gershon (JSTOR Daily, 2017)."Beeswax for the Ages," by G. Jeffrey MacDonald (The Living Church, 2016).The Waste Makers, by Vance Packard (2011). EXTRAS:"Why Do People Still Hunt Whales?" by Freakonomics Radio (2023)."How to Be Happy," by Freakonomics Radio (2018).


643. Why Do Candles Still Exist?

The former secretary of state isn’t a flamethrower, but he certainly has strong opinions. In this wide-ranging conversation with Stephen Dubner, he gives them all: on Israel, Gaza, China, Iran, Russia, Biden, Trump — and the rest of the world. SOURCES:Antony Blinken, former Secretary of State. RESOURCES:"Evaluating the impact of two decades of USAID interventions and projecting the effects of defunding on mortality up to 2030: a retrospective impact evaluation and forecasting analysis," by Daniella Cavalcanti, Lucas de Oliveira Ferreira de Sales, Andrea Ferreira da Silva, Elisa Basterra, Daiana Pena, Caterina Monti, Gonzalo Barreix, Natanael Silva, Paula Vaz, Francisco Saute, Gonzalo Fanjul, Quique Bassat, Denise Naniche, James Macinko, and Davide Rasella (The Lancet, 2025)."What Bombs Can’t Do in Iran," by Karim Sadjadpour (New York Times, 2025)."A New Palestinian Offer for Peace With Israel," by Elliot Kaufman (Wall Street Journal, 2025)."America’s Strategy of Renewal," by Antony Blinken (Foreign Affairs, 2024).


642. How to Wage Peace, According to Tony Blinken

Until recently, Delaware was almost universally agreed to be the best place for companies to incorporate. Now, with Elon Musk leading a corporate stampede out of the First State, we revisit an episode from 2023 that asked if Delaware’s “franchise” is wildly corrupt, wildly efficient … or both? SOURCES:John Cassara, retired Special Agent detailee to the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Terrorism Finance and Financial Intelligence.Doneene Damon, director with Richards, Layton, and Finger.Travis Laster, Vice Chancellor of the Delaware Court of Chancery.Dan Nielson, professor of government at the University of Texas.Hal Weitzman, professor of behavioral science, editor-in-chief of Chicago Booth Review, and executive director for intellectual capital at the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business. RESOURCES:“A Silicon Valley Giant Calls for a Delaware Exodus,” by Andrew Ross Sorkin, Bernhard Warner, Sarah Kessler, Michael J. de la Merced, and Danielle Kaye (New York Times, 2025)."Financial Secrecy Index," by Tax Justice Network (2025)."Annual Report Statistics," by Delaware Division of Corporations (2023).What’s the Matter with Delaware? How the First State Has Favored the Rich, Powerful, and Criminal — and How It Costs Us All, by Hal Weitzman (2022).Global Shell Games: Experiments in Transnational Relations, Crime, and Terrorism, by Michael G. Findley, Daniel L. Nielson, and J. C. Sharman (2014)."The FATF Recommendations," by the Financial Action Task Force (2012). EXTRAS:"Will the Democrats 'Make America Great Again'?" by Freakonomics Radio (2023).


Why Does One Tiny State Set the Rules for Everyone? (Update)

For years, the playwright David Adjmi was considered “polarizing and difficult.” But creating Stereophonic seems to have healed him. Stephen Dubner gets the story — and sorts out what Adjmi has in common with Richard Wagner. SOURCES:David Adjmi, author and playwright. RESOURCES:"The West End is enjoying a theatre revival. Can Broadway keep up?" by Daniel Thomas (Financial Times, 2025).Lot Six: A Memoir, by David Adjmi (2020).Stereophonic, (2023). EXTRAS:"How Is Live Theater Still Alive?" by Freakonomics Radio (2025)."How to Make the Coolest Show on Broadway," by Freakonomics Radio (2024).


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