About this episode

Nick Hanauer discusses Market Humanism as a new economic paradigm to replace outdated trickle-down policies.

For the first time in Pitchfork Economics history, Nick Hanauer is on the other side of the mic. Goldy and Paul sit down with Nick to discuss Market Humanism: the emerging economic paradigm he and Eric Beinhocker believe can replace the trickle-down ideas that have shaped American policymaking for the past 50 years. Why have wages stagnated while inequality soared? Why does conventional economics treat policies that help ordinary people as threats to growth? And what changes when we recognize that markets are human-built institutions—not forces of nature? The conversation exposes the failures of the old economic model, how power shapes who gets what and why, and why a fairer economy is also a more prosperous one. Nick Hanauer is a Seattle-based entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and civic leader dedicated to building a more inclusive and sustainable economy. He is the founder of Civic Ventures, a public policy incubator, and co-host of the podcast Pitchfork Economics. A leading voice for “middle-out” economics, his commentary has appeared in The Atlantic, Politico, Bloomberg, and The New York Times. He is the author of The Gardens of Democracy , The True Patriot, and a frequent…

People in this episode

Hosts: Goldy, Paul

Guest: Nick Hanauer

Topics covered

• Market Humanism
• economic paradigm
• trickle-down economics
• wage stagnation
• inequality
• inclusive economy
• middle-out economics

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Civic Ventures, Democracy Journal, The Atlantic, Bloomberg, The New York Times

Books & works: The Gardens of Democracy, The True Patriot

More episodes of Pitchfork Economics with Nick Hanauer

• What Comes After Neoliberalism? (with Nick Hanauer & Eric Beinhocker) · May 26, 2026 · 32 min
• The Worker Power Missing From the Abundance Debate (with Kate Andrias and Alexander Hertel-Fernandez) · May 19, 2026 · 34 min
• How the AI Oligarchy Went Hyperscale (with Tim Murphy) · May 12, 2026 · 39 min

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