Marketplace keeps its levity, stays away from CNBC reporting

Randy Dotinga of the North County Times in California writes Wednesday about the public radio business show Marketplace, which has kept its sense of humor when reporting about the current state of the economy and the market.

Dotinga writes, “‘We work at that aspect of the show,’ said Kai Ryssdal, the host of the afternoon version of ‘Marketplace,’ heard locally on KPBS-FM. ‘We try to make it listenable, fun, accessible and entertaining in a lot of ways. That’s a very conscious effort.’

“‘Marketplace’ has been around for about 20 years and now attracts around 9 million listeners a week to its morning, afternoon and weekend shows. While it’s impossible to know for sure until ratings come out in a few months, it seems likely that it may have even more listeners now that the economy is falling apart and people are paying attention.

“‘It’s an incredibly important moment for the economy, for business journalism and for the show,’ said Ryssdal, who’s been the show’s host since 2005. ‘It’s vitally important and essential that people understand (this story).’

“Ryssdal — his father is from Norway, hence the unusual name — said the show purposely stays away from the CNBC-style nitty-gritty of bid-ask ratios, put options and oil inventories.”

Read more here.