
America's Most Extreme Rust Belt Collapse | Chris Briem
From The Aaron Renn Show by Aaron Renn
February 9, 2026 · 37 min
About this episode
Aaron Renn interviews economic historian Chris Briem about the dramatic industrial collapse of Pittsburgh and its implications for the future of cities and regions.
In this eye-opening conversation, Aaron sits down with economic historian Chris Bream, author of Beyond Steel: Pittsburgh and the Economics of Transformation to unpack one of the most dramatic industrial collapses in American history — and what it reveals about the future of cities, regions, and the country. Pittsburgh went from being the steel capital of the world to losing hundreds of thousands of jobs and people in just a few brutal years in the early 1980s. Chris explains why the collaps...
People in this episode
Host: Aaron Renn
Guest: Chris Briem
Topics covered
- industrial collapse
- economic history
- urban transformation
- Pittsburgh
- job loss
- regional economics
Keywords
- Rust Belt
- Pittsburgh
- economic transformation
- job loss
- industrial history
- Chris Briem
- steel industry
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: Beyond Steel: Pittsburgh and the Economics of Transformation
Places: Pittsburgh
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