Mitchell Hartman

Correspondent

SHORT BIO

Mitchell’s most important job at Marketplace is to explain the economy in ways that non-expert, non-business people can understand. Michell thinks of his audience as anyone who works, whether for money or not, and lives in the economy . . . which is most people.

Mitchell wants to understand, and help people understand, how the economy works, who it helps, who it hurts and why. Mitchell gets to cover what he thinks are some of the most interesting aspects of the economy: wages and inflation, consumer psychology, wealth inequality, economic theory and how it measures up to economic reality.

Mitchell was a high school newspaper nerd and a college newspaper editor. He has worked for The Philadelphia Inquirer, WXPN-FM, WBAI-FM, KPFK-FM, Pacifica Radio, the CBC, the BBC, Monitor Radio, Cairo Today Magazine, The Jordan Times, The Middletown Press, The New Haven Register, Oregon Business Magazine, the Reed College Alumni Magazine, and Marketplace (twice — 1994-2001 & 2008-present).

Mitchell has gone on strike (Newspaper Guild vs. Knight Ridder, Philadelphia, 1985) and helped organize a union (with SAG-AFTRA at Marketplace, 2021-23). Mitchell once interviewed Marcel Marceau and got him to talk.

Latest Stories (2,010)

So what's a Ponzi scheme anyway?

Dec 19, 2008
You may have heard the term "Ponzi scheme" recently. Bernard Madoff's massive investment scam is an example of one. Mitchell Hartman reports on who Ponzi is and his scheming ways.

Employees take hit as pay raises dip

Dec 16, 2008
A new survey says companies are scaling back on pay raises. Employee benefits may also take a hit in the near future as out-of-pocket expenses like co-pays are expected to rise. Mitchell Hartman reports.

Entrepreneurs surviving first recession

Dec 16, 2008
For young entrepreneurs who have never gone through a recession, the current economy can be scary. But some are taking on the crisis as a valuable learning experience, and can find advantages. Mitchell Hartman reports.

A wish list for small businesses

Dec 11, 2008
Small businesses want a number of things from the incoming Obama administration, including some of the money from the federal bailout. Health insurance and credit card reform are also on the agenda. Mitchell Hartman reports.

Credit unions getting federal help too

Dec 9, 2008
Federal regulators will make billions in new loans available to help so-called "corporate" credit unions, which pool money from retail credit unions and invest it. Now those investments aren't looking so good. Mitchell Hartman reports.

What's the LIBOR?

Dec 8, 2008
The credit markets are still stuck tight, according to the usual gauge people look at -- the LIBOR index. It used to be a pretty obscure financial benchmark that only mattered to bank bureaucrats. But not any more. Mitchell Hartman explains.

Hedge funds, decoded

Dec 3, 2008
Hedge funds seem to make headlines when things go bad on a trading day. But what are these funds and how do they really affect the stock market? Mitchell Hartman explains the term in our latest Marketplace Decoder.

Logging on to college

Nov 21, 2008
Layoffs and lower costs are driving more students towards the virtual classroom. Marketplace's Mitchell Hartman reports on the state of online degree programs.

Bailout isn't helping out the little guy

Nov 20, 2008
Congress will grill the Treasury today on what small business is getting out of the $700 billion bailout. Mitchell Hartman reports for some small businesses, things have gotten worse since the financial bailout began.

The best states for starting a business

Nov 19, 2008
A new report ranks states by the climate for new economic growth. Mitchell Hartman reports why Massachusetts, Washington and Maryland, among others, provide a supportive environment for start-ups.