Why America is Suffering a 'Friendship Recession'

Why America is Suffering a 'Friendship Recession'

Americans have never spent so much time alone. And alone time is rising sharply for every demographic—young and old, male and female, white and non-white, metro and rural. But is aloneness the same as loneliness? And can we really blame technology for it? Derek talks with economist Bryce Ward about the causes and consequences of the rise of alone time in America. If you have questions, observations, or ideas for future episodes, email us at PlainEnglish@Spotify.com. You can find us on TikTok at www.tiktok.com/@plainenglish_ Host: Derek Thompson Guest: Bryce Ward Producer: Devon Manze Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episoder(348)

Is Pop Culture Worse Than Ever?

Is Pop Culture Worse Than Ever?

In music, billion-dollar investments in old catalogues are squeezing out new music. In film, Hollywood has become addicted to the regurgitation of familiar IP. In visual art, critics bemoan the strait...

9 Mai 20251h

The Job Market for Young Grads Is Flashing Red

The Job Market for Young Grads Is Flashing Red

Last month, the unemployment rate for recent college grads surged to nearly 6 percent. Compared to the overall economy's jobless rate, the unemployment rate for recent grads is higher now than in any ...

6 Mai 202543min

Megapod: The Crisis in American Science

Megapod: The Crisis in American Science

Today, we are witnessing an unprecedented assault on American science. Thousands of workers have been dismissed from the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation. Billions of ...

2 Mai 20252h 4min

Is This the Chinese Century?

Is This the Chinese Century?

In the last few weeks, for the first time in my life, I’ve seriously thought about the 21st century not being another American century. A recent essay in the journal Foreign Affairs by Rush Doshi and...

29 Apr 20251h 8min

What Americans Get Wrong About ADHD

What Americans Get Wrong About ADHD

In 1937, a Rhode Island psychiatrist named Charles Bradley ran an experiment on 30 child patients who had complained of headaches. He gave them an amphetamine, that is a stimulant, called Benzedrine, ...

25 Apr 20251h 7min

An Astrophysicist Explains the "Strongest Evidence Yet" of Alien Life

An Astrophysicist Explains the "Strongest Evidence Yet" of Alien Life

Last week, a team of astrophysicists from the University of Cambridge announced that they had discovered the “strongest indication” ever of extraterrestrial life. The source did not come from Mars or ...

22 Apr 20251h 4min

A Toy Manufacturer Explains How Trump’s Tariffs Could Crush His Industry

A Toy Manufacturer Explains How Trump’s Tariffs Could Crush His Industry

In the past three weeks, we've spoken to economists about the tariffs. We’ve spoken to a historian about the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act and the 100-year legacy of American protectionism. We've spoken to ...

17 Apr 202533min

Why America Will Lose Its Trade War With China

Why America Will Lose Its Trade War With China

The U.S. is in the opening innings of a full-blown trade war with China. What does that actually mean? What do we sell to China? What does China sell to us? How is each country dependent on the other ...

16 Apr 202543min

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