Make Me Smart

Make Me Smart about Olympic figure skating

The Winter Olympics kick off next week in Milan, Italy. On today’s show, Kimberly is joined by Jackie Wong, self-described skate nerd and host of “The Rocker Skating Podcast” to break down the basics of Olympic figure skating and who to watch at the Milan Cortina Games. Despite the sport’s popularity, figure skaters frequently struggle financially off the ice. We’ll get into it. Plus, you pick: real hockey or “Heated Rivalry”? Here’s everything we talked about today:"Winter Olympics 2026 guide: All you need to know about the Milan Cortina Games" from AP News"Milan Cortina Olympics: Figure skating could have multiple American golds" from Yahoo Sports"What Should I Watch at the 2026 Winter Olympics?" from The Cut"Around 5 billion people - 84 per cent of the potential global audience - followed the Olympic Games Paris 2024" from the International Olympic Committee "To Go for the Gold, These Olympians Went Into the Red" from The Wall Street JournalWe love hearing from you. Leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART or email makemesmart@marketplace.org.

What does the end of TPS mean for Haitian workers in the U.S.?

In line with President Trump’s broader crackdown on immigration, the administration has moved to end the Temporary Protected Status program for certain countries including Venezuela and Haiti. TPS has allowed immigrants from countries with unsafe environments to temporarily live and work legally in the United States for decades. On today’s show, Marketplace’s Elizabeth Trovall joins Kimberly to share her recent reporting on Haitian care workers in Florida who will soon lose their legal status and the wider impact it could have on the U.S. economy.

Trump’s rift with Europe

The European Union is still reeling after President Trump’s Davos appearance, even after he walked back some of his Greenland threats. A big question remains: How should the EU deal with Trump going forward? Financial Times correspondent Paola Tamma joins Kimberly from Brussels to explain Europe’s shifting approach to Trump and why officials haven’t yet taken more drastic measures to respond to his economic threats. Could a push to seek alternative trade allies be an antidote?

The infrastructure side of the AI boom

Tech companies are pouring billions into developing the infrastructure necessary to meet the demand for artificial intelligence. But what does that infrastructure look like on the ground? Marketplace Tech’s Meghan McCarty Carino joins Kimberly to share her takeaways after visiting a variety of data centers and reporting on the surge in AI investment. Plus, we’ll weigh in on microdramas and AI slop during a round of Half Full/Half Empty!Here’s everything we talked about today:"Inside the relentless race for AI capacity" Financial Times"Redwood Materials built record grid storage project using old EV batteries" Canary Media"Just how big is the AI investment wave?" from Reuters"YouTube says battling ‘AI slop’ is a top priority" from The L.A. Times"TikTok-like microdramas are going to make billions this year, even though they kind of suck" from Tech Crunch"Apple to Revamp Siri as a Built-In iPhone, Mac Chatbot to Fend Off OpenAI" from Bloomberg "Ads Are Coming to ChatGPT. Here’s How They’ll Work" from WiredWe love hearing from you. Leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART or email makemesmart@marketplace.org.

What is media capture?

President Trump has routinely sought to influence the business dealings of U.S. media companies, including Netflix and Paramount’s fight over the future of Warner Bros. Rodney Benson, author of the book “How Media Ownership Matters,” has argued there’s a word for this trend: media capture. On today’s show, Benson joins Kimberly to explain how the phenomenon works and why he believes it’s playing out in the U.S. Plus, we’ll smile about the wonders of the cosmos.Here’s everything we talked about today:"Trump World Is Picking Sides in the Battle for Warner Bros." from The Wall Street Journal"Is the US Media Captured?" From Columbia Journalism Review"Trump's Year of Media Capture" from Rolling Stone"Inside Bari Weiss’s Hostile Takeover of CBS News" from The New Yorker"Rodney Benson on the Value of Publicly Backed Journalism" from Columbia Journalism ReviewJoin us tomorrow for “Economics on Tap.” The YouTube livestream starts at 3:30 p.m. Pacific time, 6:30 p.m. Eastern.