Small Talk: A break from the headlines
TEXT OF INTERVIEW
KAI RYSSDAL: A final note this Friday afternoon. A break from the headlines. A chance to hear, courtesy of Brendan Newnam and Rico Gagliano, and the Marketplace staff about the news that didn’t make it on the radio.
Rico Gagliano:Scott Jagow, Marketplace blogger and host of the “After the Bell” podcast, what story are you going to be talking about this weekend?
Scott Jagow: Well, Wired magazine had a great story that the CIA is sinking millions of dollars into a company that tracks blogs and other social network sites on the Web.
Gagliano: And that’s not anything I should be afraid of, right?
Jagow: Well, I don’t know. I think they’re really trying to target foreign social networks to keep tabs on terrorists.
Gagliano: So the lesson is if you’re a terrorist, don’t Twitter about it.
Brendan Newnam: Stacey Vanek-Smith, senior reporter at Marketplace, what’s your story?
Stacey Vanek-Smith: Bank of America and Citigroup are going to start charging people for being good.
Newnam: It was only a matter of time.
Vanek-Smith: I know. So Bank of America is going to start charging people who pay off their credit card balances every month.
Newnam: What?
Vanek-Smith: I know. And Citigroup are going to start charging people who don’t spend enough on their credit cards.
Newnam: And next comes the “helping an old lady across the street” fee and then the “daily breathing” toll.
Vanek-Smith: Yes.
Newnam: And of course, the banks won’t be subject to these fees, because they’re not in danger of paying back the government on time.
Gagliano: Rod Abid, senior producer of the Marketplace Morning Report, what story are you going to be talking about this weekend?
Rod Abid: Well, I love this. Guy in Massachusetts goes to a Honda dealer, wants to test drive a new Honda. Salesman gets in with him. A thousand miles later, they catch the guy in Wisconsin. He took it on a 1,000 mile test drive.
Gagliano: He just wanted to be sure that the brakes were really reliable.
Abid: Yeah, you have a lot of things to check out. You’ve got to get the seat just right, you’ve got the radio.
Abid: Exactly, and if this guy goes back to buy the car, he’ll get a discount, because there’s 1,000 miles on it.
Ryssdal: That’s a quick taste of what Brendan and Rico can do. Their full talents are on display in their podcast. It’s called “The Dinner Party Download.” And there’s a link to it on our Web site. It’s Marketplace.org.
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