Good on Paper

Check your thinking

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About Good on Paper

Have you ever heard a commonly held belief or a fast-developing worldview and asked: Is that idea right? Or just good on paper? Each week, host Jerusalem Demsas and a guest take a closer look at the facts and research that challenge the popular narratives of the day, to better understand why we believe what we believe.

The Quiet Trump-Harris Trade Agreement

Both parties have become open to heterodox ideas on tariffs.

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What Really Fueled the ‘East Asian Miracle’?

New research upends conventional wisdom on what actually drives economic growth.

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Would You Give Up Your Kidney for $50,000?

I mean, it’s one kidney. What could it cost?

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Why Does Crime Go Up When School Starts?

New research complicates the uncomplicated idea that attending school is good for kids.

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How (Not) to Change Someone's Mind

New research shows the promise—and limits—of fact-checks.

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The Wandering Officer

What happens when officers feel stuck in a department

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Who's Responsible for the Housing Crisis?

How local governments broke America's housing markets

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How Slaves Used the Law

A historian explains how some enslaved people were able to access contract and property rights even before emancipation.

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