Marketplace (radio program)


Marketplace is an American radio program that focuses on business, the economy, and events that influence them. The program was first broadcast in 1989. Hosted by Kai Ryssdal since 2005, the show is produced and distributed by American Public Media. Marketplace is produced in Los Angeles with bureaus in New York, Washington, D.C., Portland, Baltimore, London, and Shanghai. It won a Peabody Award in 2000.

History

Marketplace was founded in 1989 by James Russell in Long Beach, California. It was initially affiliated with KLON-FM at Cal State—Long Beach and distributed by American Public Radio, later renamed Public Radio International. The show nearly ran out of funding its first year, which Russell described, saying, "We were within three days of laying off our small staff and closing down." The program survived through the help of the University of Southern California, who acquired the show, and later, in 1990, with the underwriting of General Electric. USC became the only university in the US at the time to produce a daily news program distributed nationally.
In 2000, Minnesota Public Radio acquired Marketplace Productions from USC. This acquisition was the subject of a lawsuit by Public Radio International. In 2004, American Public Media was founded as the production and distribution arm of MPR, and is currently the producer and distributor of Marketplace.

Demographics

As of 2014, Marketplaces programs reached upwards of 12 million listeners with an average income of $101,000.

Companion programs

A sister program, the Marketplace Morning Report, offers seven unique seven-minute, thirty-second morning broadcasts that replace the business news-oriented "E" segment of NPR's Morning Edition on many public radio stations. Since September 2014, Marketplace Morning Report has been incorporated into Morning Edition as a segment in the latter program's second hour. The Marketplace brand also took over the money advice program Sound Money, which was renamed Marketplace Money in 2005, with content oriented toward a personal finance theme. The three shows share reporters and editorial staff. Marketplace Money was replaced with Marketplace Weekend in June 2014. Marketplace Weekend was cancelled in 2018.

Podcasts

All four radio programs are made available as free podcasts, along with a podcast combining all shows. In 2015, Marketplace began to offer digital-only podcasts: Actuality, Codebreaker, and Corner Office. In 2016, The Uncertain Hour and Make Me Smart with Kai and Molly were added.

Awards

Marketplace has been the recipient of multiple awards, including:

Hosts