Monthly Archives: April 2016

For Quartz, I wrote about the geography of the unequal economic recovery in the US. Coastal cities with thriving economies have become unaffordable for the average worker; heartland cities that are affordable have few jobs, and most Americans cannot afford … Continue reading →

For Quartz, I wrote about the very misleading 5% unemployment rate, a statistic which discounts 1) the long-term unemployed and the lowered labor participation rate 2) the explosion of the low-paying, unreliable “gig economy” 3) the proliferation of low-wage jobs … Continue reading →

For the Globe and Mail, I wrote about the New York primary, in a piece published the day before. The piece discusses not only the candidates — three of whom are personally connected to New York — but the elitism … Continue reading →

It was another rough year for Uzbekistan, with entrenched corruption, forced cotton labor, and an economy weakened by the Russian remittance crisis among the key trends. My report for Nations in Transit is out today. Here is an excerpt: Despite the government’s … Continue reading →

Most articles about why people vote for Donald Trump get their answers from two places: polls, with no follow-up questions but lots of speculation as to the “real meaning”; and rallies, where reporters interview the die-hards. Trump fans are rarely … Continue reading →