Global Financial Crisis (2008-2009)

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Gretchen Morgenson discusses the unprecedented collapse of Merrill Lynch, America's most famous brokerage house.

Nobel laureate Paul Krugman believes that increased public spending — akin to the efforts of the New Deal during the Great Depression — is the best way to escape the financial crisis and regain American global leadership.

Much has been made of the effects the recent financial crisis will have on "Main Street." Linguist Geoff Nunberg. He discusses how this term gained such popular — and presidential — usage.

With the markets in flux and a massive government rescue package in the works, New York Times columnist Gretchen Morgenson looks into potential conflicts of interest in the nearly $700 billion deal.

The bankruptcy of financial services giant Lehman Brothers and the 500-point drop in the stock market on Sept. 15 have sent shock waves through the financial community. Law professor Michael Greenberger discusses the potential ramifications of the recent turmoil.

Jason Furman has been given the task of formulating Barack Obama's economic policy. He's the presidential hopeful's top economic adviser, and he will talk about where Obama stands on the most pressing economic issues.

Humans aren't the only ones smarting from the economy's downturn: Animals are also feeling the sting. Stephanie Shain, director of outreach for companion animals at the Humane Society of the United States, explains.

According to financial journalist Paul Muolo, a series of Wall Street missteps and misdeeds caused the subprime mortgage crisis.

Perplexed by the U.S. economy? You're not alone. Law professor Michael Greenberger joins Fresh Air to explain the sub-prime mortgage crisis, credit defaults, the shaky future of other types of loans and what we can expect from the U.S. financial markets.

Pulitzer Prize-winning business columnist Gretchen Morgenson talks about the subprime mortgage crisis and its effects on the markets and on the economy. Morgenson, an assistant business and financial editor for The New York Times, has covered the financial markets for The Times since 1998.

For 18 years, from 1987 to 2006, Alan Greenspan was chair of the Federal Reserve Board — the United States' central banker, in charge of steering the nation's monetary policy. His every word was scrutinized by markets, read like tea leaves by market makers and investors looking for clues to his thoughts on the economy's health.