Drive to Work

Congressional stock trading is hard to identify, but reporters persevere

Congressional stock trading has been the topic of many pieces of legislation this past decade, but the U.S. is entering a new era with the Trump administration. After tariff movements that led to Democratic lawmakers proposing a ban on congressional stock trading, one journalist says it is a rare occasion where both sides are on the same page at the same time.
In this episode, George Headley speaks with Dave Levinthal, an investigative journalist and former deputy editor at Business Insider. Levinthal has examined politicians who have violated the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act and reported award-winning content throughout the years. He says covering this topic is a passion project of his and allows him to continue to produce watchdog journalism aimed at those in power.

Business journalists embrace Substack as a full-time platform

While Substack may be a departure from the traditional news formula, its platform has benefited many journalists, including Joseph Politano, the data journalist behind Apricitas Economics. In this episode of We Mean Business, George Headley interviews Politano about what drove him to start his Substack newsletter and what drives him to continue publishing it today. While the initial venture may have been to boost his portfolio for prospective employers, Politano has found satisfaction in breaking down complicated data for readers, even when creating charts can take hours of work. With over 67,000 subscribers, Politano has managed to turn a short-term project into a full-time job, which naturally comes with its own pros and cons.