Darian Woods
Darian Woods is a reporter and producer for The Indicator from Planet Money. He blends economics, journalism, and an ear for audio to tell stories that explain the global economy. He's reported on the time the world got together and solved a climate crisis, vaccine intellectual property explained through cake baking, and how Kit Kat bars reveal hidden economic forces.
Before NPR, Woods worked as an adviser to the Secretary of the New Zealand Treasury. He has an honors degree in economics from the University of Canterbury and a Master of Public Policy from UC Berkeley.
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The McDonald's Arch Deluxe is one of the most infamous product failures in history. In his new book, The Voltage Effect, economist John List says it's an example of a good idea failing to scale up.
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Uber's CEO Travis Kalanick grew the company fast, but a venture capitalist wanted him out due to scandals. What ensued was a story about the tug-of-war between venture capital and founders in tech.
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As Russia places troops on the Ukrainian border, there's a financial nuclear weapon that Europe and the U.S. can use: ban Russia from the system most banks use to transfer money internationally.
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The shortest route to get a ship from Asia to the U.S. is through America's West Coast ports. But given the pileup there, some ships are going the long way through eastern Canada into the Great Lakes.
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The vinyl record supply chain has always been a little fragile. But can it withstand the economic force that is Adele? She reportedly pressed over 500,000 vinyl records for her new album, 30.
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Here's what a troubled property developer tells us about the Chinese economy.
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For decades, China exported better and cheaper stuff. But now China is experiencing a factory worker crunch that could lead to higher prices on exports. It's been a long time coming.
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An epic drought and population explosion is draining Lake Mead and the Colorado River, which millions in the Southwestern U.S. rely on.
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The plant-based meat industry is growing rapidly, and companies that have traditionally focused on fattening cows with grass, corn, soy and other crops are now trying to take beef out of the equation.
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The Senate is set to go on break without raising the debt ceiling, prompting grievances among Washington lawmakers. But the only time in history the debt was paid down, it didn't go quite as planned.