John Dimsdale

Washington, D.C. Bureau Chief, Marketplace

SHORT BIO

John Dimsdale has spent almost 40 years in radio. As the former head of Marketplace’s Washington, D.C., bureau, he provided insightful commentary on the intersection of government and money for the entire Marketplace portfolio.

As Dimsdale notes, “Sooner or later, every story in the world comes through Washington,” and reporting on those issues is like “… going to school with all the best professors and then reporting to listeners what I found out at the end of the day … Can you believe they pay me to do that?”

Dimsdale began working for Marketplace in 1990, when he opened the D.C. bureau. The next day, Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, triggering the first Gulf War, and Dimsdale has been busy ever since.

In his 20 years at Marketplace, Dimsdale has reported on two wars, the dot-com boom, the housing bust, healthcare reform and the greening of energy. His interviews with four U.S. Presidents, four Hall-of-Famers, broadcast journalist Walter Cronkite, computer scientist Sergey Brin, U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson and former U.S. Vice President Hubert Humphrey stand out as favorites. Some of his greatest contributions include a series on government land-use policies and later, a series on the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste disposal site.

Before joining Marketplace, Dimsdale worked at NPR, the Pennsylvania Public Television Network, Post-Newsweek Stations and Independent Network News.

A native of Washington, D.C., and the son of a federal government employee, Dimsdale has been passionate about public policy since the Vietnam War. He holds a bachelor’s degree in International Studies from Washington College in Chestertown, Md., and a master’s degree in Broadcast Journalism from the University of Missouri in Columbia, Mo.

Dimsdale and his wife, Claire, live in the suburb of Silver Spring, Md., and when not working, he enjoys traveling, carpentry, photography, videography, swimming and home brewing.

Latest Stories (983)

Considering sunset commissions

Jul 19, 2006
House lawmakers today consider a proposal to create independent commissions to review spending programs for waste and possible termination. John Dimsdale reports.

Ford commits to fuel efficiency . . . in the UK

Jul 17, 2006
Ford today announced it will invest almost $2 billion to develop better hybrid technology in its automobiles. But the automaker will do it all in Britain. John Dimsdale reports.

Lining up to take buyouts

Jun 23, 2006
With an estimated 50,000 GM and Ford employees expected to take buyout packages from the two carmakers, the United Auto Workers union will be taking a serious hit to its membership. John Dimsdale reports.

Hastert accused of profiting from earmarks

Jun 22, 2006
More allegations of influence peddling in Washington, and this time Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert is allegedly involved. John Dimsdale reports.

Congressional hearings on data brokers

Jun 21, 2006
Lawmakers promised to quash private data brokers who covertly gatherAmericans' telephone records without subpoenas or warrants. John Dimsdale reports it's an issue most politicians agree upon.

EU-US Summit

Jun 21, 2006
President Bush meets with European leaders today for the biannual EU-US Summit. Trans-Atlantic cooperation is expected to be the watchword. But as John Dimsdale reports, the two sides are no closer to bridging an ongoing trade dispute.

Stop Over-Spending

Jun 20, 2006
A Senate panel takes up proposed legislation today aimed at curbing deficit spending. A measure that would give presidents a line-item veto may have support on both sides of the aisle.John Dimsdale reports.

Putting a stop to government overspending?

Jun 19, 2006
The Senate Budget Committee tomorrow looks at an overhaul package that would force big spenders in Congress to stay below a steadily declining limit. If they don't? Mandatory across-the-board spending cuts. John Dimsdale reports.

The cost of sloppy accounting

Jun 16, 2006
Federal regulators report Fannie Mae's accounting missteps cost shareholders $11 billion, reviving efforts by lawmakers to rein in the mortgage lending giant. John Dimsdale reports.

FEMA getting battered again

Jun 14, 2006
Congress looked today at an audit that found massive abuse of FEMA relief money. As much as $1.4 billion — or 16% — was spent on things like tropical vacations, a divorce attorney, even a sex change. John Dimsdale reports