Martha Starr
martha-starr.bsky.social
Martha Starr
@martha-starr.bsky.social

Washington DC representative of the American Economic Association. Longtime DC economist, deeply interested in economic statistics

Economics 65%
Business 19%

Reposted by Martha Starr

Will Lewis out as publisher of The Washington Post. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/07/t...
Washington Post C.E.O. Will Lewis Steps Down After Stormy Tenure
www.nytimes.com

Not interesting. Tiresome at best

Very much appreciate the complex analysis to make ‘sense’ of conflicting threads

Ditto former BLS commissioner Bill Beach (2019-23)!

Reposted by David H. Kaye, Olúfẹ́mi Táíwò, Brian Keegan , and 88 more

Video message from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=KckG...
www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/s...
Statement by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell
YouTube video by Federal Reserve
www.youtube.com

Early disclosure of jobs data violates OMB Statistical Policy Directive #3, but that’s a regulation vs a law. Fines up to $250K or prison time up to 5 yrs could be levied, but are not automatic. Trying to give Truth Social followers a leg up on trading, different story.
www.bls.gov/bls/statisti...

Sobering

Economic research depends on economic data! Attend or live stream:

“The State of Government Economic Statistics“
www.aeaweb.org/conference/2...
Monday Jan 5, 8-10am
Marriott Philadelphia Downtown Grand Ballroom Salon E
American Economic Association
www.aeaweb.org

Not to be missed

Score!

Interesting & important! Special guest appearance by Ben ;)

Please be careful

Not Americans, White House

Reposted by Martha Starr

Also anyone who thinks BLS is consulting an FOMC calendar while bringing the entire machinery of data collection, curation, and dissemination back online is sorely mistaken.

Not at all good for insulation of key economic policies & issues from short-run political considerations

www.nytimes.com/2025/09/22/u...
Supreme Court Allows Trump to Fire F.T.C. Commissioner
www.nytimes.com
Am Econ Assn speaks out about firing the #BLS Commish.

"It is standard practice for statistical estimates to be revised as [better] data become available. These revisions reflect the commitment of statistical agencies to accuracy, transparency, and methodological rigor--not failure or bias."
AEA Statement on Dismissal of BLS Comm.

"The independence of the federal statistical agencies is essential to the proper functioning of a modern economy. Accurate, timely, and impartial statistics are the foundation upon which households, businesses, and policymakers make critical decisions."

The lack of allies is sobering, but is this due to conflation of “higher education” with elite schools like Harvard, Columbia, and Yale? ~1% of undergrads at 4 yr institutions attend top 15 schools. Yes, they have outsized influence - but they’re not the ones educating tomorrow’s workforce.

Important for all users of these data - speak up stat
🚨red alert 🚨 for education researchers!

#edusky #econsky
AERA has just learned that all restricted-use NCES data licenses will be cancelled, possibly as early as March 20. We urgently request that all AERA members and others in the research community with restricted-use licenses take these two actions: www.aera.net/Research-Pol...
🚨red alert 🚨 for education researchers!

#edusky #econsky
AERA has just learned that all restricted-use NCES data licenses will be cancelled, possibly as early as March 20. We urgently request that all AERA members and others in the research community with restricted-use licenses take these two actions: www.aera.net/Research-Pol...

Reposted by Martha Starr

Measles outbreak in the U.S. continues to expand with 39 new cases in Texas (198 total) and 20 new cases in New Mexico (30 total)
h/t BNO News

Check it out:

Elon Musk’s net worth on Inauguration Day: $449b. 45 days into Trump 2.0: $330b. (source: Bloomberg Billionaires Index).

I wrote a short blog post about the tragedy currently unfolding in the evaluation industry. Trump is destroying vital research capacity and decades of instructional knowledge for pocket change. 1/x

rooseveltinstitute.org/blog/the-irr...
The Irreparable Damage Being Done to Federal Policy Research and Evaluation - Roosevelt Institute
Though their goals obviously differed, Republican and Democratic administrations have for decades relied on the work of social scientists both within and outside the government to conduct research on ...
rooseveltinstitute.org

Shocking Senator Warner. Would we “celebrate” a mass murderer if they helped an older person across the street ?

Reposted by Martha Starr

RIP #FESAC
The Fed. Economic #Statistics Advisory Committee has been axed by the Commerce Sec. Since 2000, FESAC’s unpaid top academic & private experts have advised #Census, #BLS & #BEA on their key #economicindicators.
Why: "mission fulfilled" HUH?
#inflation #GDP #jobs #econsky #productivity