Stephanie Hughes

Senior Reporter

SHORT BIO

Stephanie Hughes is a senior reporter at Marketplace. She’s focused on education and the economy, and lives in Brooklyn.

She's reported on topics including the effectiveness of technology used by schools to prevent violence, startups that translate global climate data for homebuyers, and why theater majors are getting jobs writing for chatbots.

Previously, she worked as a producer for Bloomberg, where she covered finance, technology, and economics. Before that, she worked as the senior producer for “Maryland Morning,” broadcast on WYPR, the NPR affiliate in Baltimore. She’s also reported for other media outlets, including NPR’s “Morning Edition,” “All Things Considered,” “The Takeaway,” and Salon.

At WYPR, she helped produce the year-long, multi-platform series “The Lines Between Us,” which won a 2014 duPont-Columbia Award. She’s also interested in using crowdsourcing to create online projects, such as this interactive map of flags around Maryland, made from listener contributions.

A native of southern Delaware, Stephanie graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in communications, studying at the Annenberg School. Before she found her way to radio, she worked in the children’s division of the publishing house Farrar, Straus, and Giroux.

Latest Stories (508)

Sausage-makers, breadwinners?

May 24, 2023
Enrollment in 2-year culinary programs was up nearly 10 percent this spring from last year. This comes as employment for chefs and head cooks is expected to grow quickly.
Enrollment in 2-year culinary programs jumped nearly 10% in a year, according to new data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.
Getty Images

If ESPN goes to streaming, what happens to cable?

May 19, 2023
Leaders at Disney, which owns ESPN, say it’s an inevitability that the cable channel will migrate to streaming. Such a move would shake up the cable industry.
The CEO of Disney, which owns ESPN, has called the migration of ESPN to streaming “an inevitability.” Above, ESPN College Gameday hosts in 2020.
Matt Cashore-Pool/Getty Images

Americans are spending less on hobbies. How's that affecting stores that rely on them?

May 18, 2023
Commerce Department data shows retail sales for sporting goods, hobby, instrument and book stores were down 5.4% in April compared to a year ago. Sales for garden equipment and supplies were down too.
Lindsay Farrell, who works at Canton Games in Baltimore, holds out a 100-sided die. It costs $44.99. Stephanie Hughes / Marketplace

Inflation for services remains stubbornly high

May 10, 2023
Here's how higher wages, housing shortages and income level can play a role in how much you pay for things like exterminators and car repairs.
Motor vehicle repair prices, which were up 20% in April from last year, can be particularly burdensome for lower-income households.
Jon Cherry/Getty Images

Some advertisers say they're ready to spend again — and media platforms stand to gain

May 9, 2023
Many platforms saw declines in ad revenue over the past year and had to cut costs and staff. Now there's optimism about a rebound.
"Whether it's television, cable, streaming, as well as audio, any company that accepts advertising will benefit," says media analyst Jessica Reif Ehrlich.
Martin Bureau/AFP via Getty Images

The insurance industry is hiring

May 5, 2023
Insurance is a growing field right now. Severe weather and widespread worry are among the reasons.
Adverse weather is one reason the insurance industry is booming. For instance, insurers  need adjusters to examine the damage caused by floods and tornadoes.
Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images

What do bank branches offer in an online-banking world?

May 3, 2023
JPMorgan Chase's purchase of First Republic includes its brick-and-mortar locations. In-person interaction is still a key part of the business.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

How interest-only mortgages can be risky for borrowers and lenders

May 2, 2023
These mortgages were key to the economic climate that led to the 2008 financial crisis. First Republic had a lot of them.
First Republic Bank had a lot of of interest-only loans, which can be risky for both borrowers and lenders.
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

College decision day announcements take on a life — and cost — of their own

Apr 27, 2023
The May 1 ritual can put pressure on students to make a choice before they have financial aid information, a college consultant says.
“A lot of times, you have to tell students, 'Divorce yourself from college signing day if that's what it takes to make the right decision for you,'" says Jennifer Jessie, a college consultant.
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School superintendents are leaving in droves. How do districts prep new candidates?

Apr 26, 2023
The job requires leaders to be good with both people and money.
The Public Schools Superintendents' Association of Maryland is putting on an academy for aspiring superintendents to develop administrators qualified to lead districts.
Stephanie Hughes/Marketplace