An Economist Walks into a Bar: TEDx Talk by Robert Litan

In this TEDx talk, Robert Litan, a nonresident senior fellow in Economic Studies, tells the Kansas City audience “how economists and their ideas have contributed to the rise of the entire Internet economy and to some of the iconic companies within it.” Litan reviews the contributions economists have made to business models and structures that have contributed to the success of endeavors such as Cupid.com, Priceline, Google ads, Amazon, and sabermetrics in sports. “I think economists deserve some respect,” Litan said. Watch below or on tedxtalks.ted.com:

This talk was part of an event titled “Changing the Narrative,” held on August 9, 2014.

Litan is author, with Ian Hathaway of Ennsyte Economics, of the recent papers, “The Other Aging of America: The Increasing Dominance of Older Firms” and “Declining Business Dynamism in the United States: A Look at States and Metros.”