"How We Survive": Kai Ryssdal visits the frontlines where national security meets climate change. Listen Now

Census reports drop in poverty, but for a lot of Americans, things don't feel better

Sep 12, 2017
We’ve got new numbers today from the U.S. Census Bureau on poverty in America. The official poverty rate went down by 0.8 percent. That means last year, about 40.6 million Americans were living in poverty (12.7 percent). Median household incomes went up by about 3.2 percent. If you’re in the middle of the economic spectrum, […]

LGBTQ advocates ask why questions left off Census survey

Jul 10, 2017
Gay rights advocates say questions about sexual orientation and gender identity would connect the LGBTQ community to all the rich data of the census.
Gay, lesbian and transgender activists react to the unanimous decision by the Iowa Supreme Court recognizing same sex marriage as a civil right during a celebration on April 2009 at the University of Iowa.
David Greedy/Getty Images

Census director resigns as ramp up for 2020 count begins

May 10, 2017
The resignation of the U.S. Census Bureau director leaves the agency with no leader just month before it begins a big hiring and technology push for the 2020 census. Data from the census is useful far beyond counting the population. Economists and businesses use census numbers to decide where and when to expand, or pull […]

Why people are moving

Jun 6, 2014
The U.S. Census Bureau released a survey detailing the reasons for when people move.

Income, poverty and a new interactive from Marketplace

Sep 20, 2013
The U.S. Census released a report on the national median income and poverty rate this week. And Marketplace released a data tool on incomes to tell a bigger story about how we live at any income.

For public good, not for profit.

Income Upshot: Homer Simpson edition

Sep 12, 2013
The Income Upshot tool can tell you how people at your income level live, work and play. But you can also find out a lot about other people in the public eye.

My first job: Census worker in New York

Aug 20, 2013
Writer and filmmaker dream hampton on the job that honed her interviewing skills.

Census survey goes online

Dec 19, 2012
Census Bureau to put yearly American Community Survey online to save money, encourage responses.