David Kestenbaum
David Kestenbaum is a correspondent for NPR, covering science, energy issues and, most recently, the global economy for NPR's multimedia project Planet Money. David has been a science correspondent for NPR since 1999. He came to journalism the usual way — by getting a Ph.D. in physics first.
In his years at NPR, David has covered science's discoveries and its darker side, including the Northeast blackout, the anthrax attacks and the collapse of the New Orleans levees. He has also reported on energy issues, particularly nuclear and climate change.
David has won awards from the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Physical Society and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.
David worked briefly on the show This American Life, and set up a radio journalism program in Cambodia on a Fulbright fellowship. He also teaches a journalism class at Johns Hopkins University.
David holds a bachelor's of science degree in physics from Yale University and a doctorate in physics from Harvard University.
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For most of U.S. history, there was no minimum wage. Politicians passed laws tiptoeing toward one. But the Supreme Court struck those laws down. We look at how the U.S. finally got a minimum wage.
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Our Planet Money team talks to a well-known short seller who tells the story of one stock he bet against. He made a bunch of money, betting against a stock a lot of people liked.
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David Kestenbaum of NPR's Planet Money tells the story of the first stock ever shorted. It's a tale of intrigue, lies, sabotage and a life of exile.
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Most people don't bet that stocks will fall in value, and we wondered why. So we decided to short something ourselves. -
Our Planet Money team has a story about a man who realized at the time that he was the only person in the world with his job. It was a job selling something almost no one wanted.
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A jubilee is an idea that dates back to Biblical times. The idea was that every 50 years or so there would be this moment where debts would be forgiven. The jubilee has not gotten a lot of traction in the modern world, but right now, Iceland is actually trying it.
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Members of OPEC meet this week. It used to be the world held its breath when this happened, worried what the meeting would mean for oil prices. But experts say times have changed.
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Most Americans feel relieved when they see a drop in prices at the pump. Jason Bruns feels the opposite. A higher price of oil is good for him. He owns 10 oil wells in Kansas that produce about two barrels a day.
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The price of new textbooks has gone through the roof. But what students spend on books has barely budged.
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The 1964 World's Fair showcased jet packs and other miracles of science. Here's how people back then thought the future would look (and how it actually turned out).
